Tan (left) and Chong speaking to reporters after the court proceedings.
KUCHING: The Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) has rejected the representation by Bandar Kuching MP Chong Chieng Jen and Stampin MP Julian Tan to plead guilty to the charge of illegal assembly.
The decision was announced by the prosecutor at the Sessions Court here yesterday before Judge Steve Ritikos.
Chong and Tan were the only two persons charged with allegedly taking part in the Bersih 4 rally that began at the Kuching Hilton and ended at the Song Kheng Hai rugby grounds on Aug 29, 2015.
The representation was made yesterday morning to the Senior Federal Counsel (SFC) – which was the first day of the case’s trial.
Their representation to the SFC was that they would plead guilty to the charge on two conditions – the fine must be less than RM2,000 and there would not be an appeal from the prosecutor against the sentence.
The charge under Section 4(1)(c) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 provides a maximum fine of RM10,000 upon conviction.
If the fine is above RM2,000 they will be disqualified as Members of Parliament and also would not be eligible to seek re-election in the next general election.