KUALA LUMPUR (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - When former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak appeared at the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Wednesday morning (July 4), many asked why he was not in orange.
They were, of course, referring to the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission's (MACC) infamous orange lock-up T-shirt "uniform".
Instead, Najib was wearing a dark blue suit with a white shirt.
The orange uniform is, however, used only when a suspect is being remanded for investigation.
Previously, the likes of former Felda chairman Isa Samad, Penang state executive councillor Phee Boon Poh and Parti Warisan Sabah chief Shafie Apdal had been pictured in this uniform while attending court for remand hearings.
Suspects being remanded can also be handcuffed.
A remand process involves a suspect being brought in front of a magistrate, who will then decide whether the authorities will be able to detain the suspect for a specific amount of time, said a source.
Usually, a suspect is remanded when investigators need more time to question the person, or to gather sufficient evidence for possible prosecution.
In the case of Najib, he was not remanded but was instead held overnight on Tuesday and immediately charged on Wednesday.
Similarly, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng was never asked to wear the orange T-shirt with the words "Lokap SPRM" when he was in court to be charged over corruption.
Lawyer N. Surendran said that until someone is convicted of any crime, they should not be forced to wear uniforms of any colour.
"This practice of making people wear these uniforms breaches the presumption of innocence," he said.
