Azalina: Other national assets may be at risk to another seizure bid by self-proclaimed ‘Sulu heirs’
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28 — Law Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said today warned that Sulu Sultanate ‘heirs’ could be eyeing other Malaysian assets besides the Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) seizure attempt.
In a Parliamentary briefing session, she said that the self-styled Sulu claimants and their lawyers are trying hard to target the country’s national commercial assets and cited their dubious intentions.
“I want the Opposition and the government lawmakers to be concerned about this issue because it’s about our country’s sovereignty,” she told Members of Parliaments from both sides of the aisle today.
She further said that the intention of the self-proclaimed "Sulu heirs" was dubious because the seizure bid was made through a commercial international arbitration court instead of the International Court of Justice.
She also briefly said that the arbitration and seizure attempts might be a money-making bid as the "heirs" were reportedly represented by a litigation funding company dubbed “Therium”.
Citing the Luxembourg court cancellation on Petronas assets seizure, she said that the identity of those claimants remains dubious as Malaysia has challenged based on the fact that the claimants had, according to the court, voluntarily omitted to reveal their real addresses.
Following that, Azalina said that she will meet Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor and ask for the state government's assistance in identifying those Sulu claimants.
Previously, it was reported that Azalina said that the group of individuals claiming to be the heirs of the Sultan of Sulu were trying to distort the truth in a dispute relating to Sabah.
Azalina criticised the actions of the self-styled "heirs" and their lawyers and stressed that Malaysia would continue to defend its rights against any of their attempts to grab Malaysia's assets.
On January 24 this year, the District Court of Luxembourg decided to lift or set aside a seizure order on two Petronas subsidiaries and their assets. The seizure order was previously issued last July 11 upon request of the alleged Sulu heirs.
On January 30, Azalina said Malaysia is also currently challenging an ex parte Exequatur Order — or a May 18, 2022 order which recognised Stampa's purported arbitration award in Luxembourg — before the Luxembourg Court of Appeal.
The eight Sulu claimants were last year reported as comprising three retirees, three unemployed persons aged 51 to 70, one 54-year-old school administrator and a 70-year-old businessman, with litigation funding firm Therium also reported to be funding the Sulu claimants' legal and arbitration fees which have cost millions of US dollars.
