Sweating It Out In Brunei High Court
By Ignatius Stephen

Bandar Seri Begawan - There was "hot" news in the Brunei High Court once again yesterday as the judge, lawyers, the two accused in the dock, the court officials and those in the public gallery sweated it out.

The "sizzling" scene unfolded during the long drawn out trial of Brunei's ex-development minister and a contractor both accused of corruption. The hot air was not generated by the lawyers but for yet another day, the court's air conditioning packed up.

Technicians said the cooling tower had gone bust. Some months ago it was the compressor that was replaced eventually. Without air conditioning the atmosphere was unbearable in the afternoon.

Furthermore, proceedings came to a grinding halt later in the day as the necessary court interpreters could not be found. A temporary interpreter attempted to help but the place became too hot and apparently he became drowsy and dozed off momentarily.

The court could only sit in the afternoon because the official interpreter is a teacher and he had to attend classes in the morning. So, for the past three days nothing much happened in the Brunei High Court during this high profile trial for which top lawyers from Malaysia and Hong Kong have flown in.

Under these circumstances the case was adjourned till the following day. In the dock are ex-Development Minister, Pengiran Dr Ismail Pengiran Damit, and contractor Wong Tim Kai who ran Ted Sdn Bhd. They are pleading not guilty to the charges while Chief Justice Dato Mohammed Saied is hearing the case.

Prosecuting on behalf of the Attorney-General was Andrew Macrae, a senior council from Hong Kong, assisted by DPP Aldillah Mohd Salleh and Maggie Wong. Defending the ex-minister is Ahmad Basuni Abas while Wong has Balwant Singh Sidhu and Rudi Lee as legal counsels. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

Click Here To Have Your Say On This Story

Brudirect.com News

Brunei's Fastest Growing Website with