Magistrate Yogesh Prasad has ordered the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to provide a full list of witnesses in former Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and former Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem’s abuse of office case as the charges against the two were consolidated in the High Court.
The two appeared before Magistrate Prasad this morning.
Magistrate Prasad says this is so that they can see if there is any cross-linking of the witnesses against both the accused.
He says if there is cross-linking, then Sayed-Khaiyum and Saneem’s lawyer Devanesh Sharma cannot represent them both and they will have to get separate lawyers.
Sayed-Khaiyum and Saneem have maintained their not guilty plea.
The pre-trial conference has been set for the 14th of May.
Sayed-Khaiyum is charged with one count of abuse of office while Mohammed Saneem is charged with one count of receiving a corrupt benefit.
It is alleged that Sayed-Khaiyum between June 30th and July 12th in 2022, while being the Acting Prime Minister, signed a Deed of Variation and Addendum between the Government and the then Supervisor of Elections, Saneem.
It is alleged the approval for the government to pay the taxes of Saneem was done without the proper approval of the Constitutional Offices Commission and the President.
It is alleged that between the 1st of June 2022 and the 31st of July 2022, while being employed as the Supervisor of Elections, Saneem without lawful authority and reasonable excuse, asked for, and obtained a benefit for himself, that is, the approval and payment of deductible tax relief of more than $50,000 on his back pay from a senior Government official.
@fijivillage.com Court raises concern over joint legal representation in Sayed-Khaiyum and Saneem case #fiji #fyp ♬ original sound - fijivillage
