“I want you home”. These four words from his wife helped Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kamarudin to change his mind and agree to bail being posted.
His wife Marina Lee Abdullah, 54, said she had sent a note with the words via a prison warder on Wednesday. He had refused to allow any visitors after being taken to the Sungai Buloh Prison on Tuesday.
“My note helped him agree to bail being posted,” she told reporters after handing over her bank passbook for RM5,000 to a Petaling Jaya Sessions Court interpreter at 2pm to process bail application for her spouse.The mother of five said she was also relieved that Raja Petra, 58, was fine despite declining prison food for a day.
“I met him at 11am at Sungai Buloh Prison for 10 minutes. He told me on the telephone that he wanted to be out on bail,” she said.
Marina said Raja Petra also confirmed that he had a drink earlier in the morning.
“I did not waste much time there and rushed to the court to expedite the process of bail application,” she said.
She said her husband, who had on Tuesday claimed trial to sedition, only complained of having a backache.
Asked why Raja Petra had refused to see her twice on Wednesday, she said it could be because she could have dampened his resolve to refuse all meals.
Marina said that so far, RM44,000 (including the RM5,000 withdrawn for his bail) had been collected via a specially set up CIMB bank account through an online campaign.
“We will let Raja Petra decide what to do with the balance of the money. I heard another blogger will be given RM3,000 for his bail,” she added.
“There is general consensus for the money to be kept for other bloggers who may face any problem like this. We will also probably ask his readers to vote on what do with the money they had contributed.”
Marina also said that a bank officer contributed a ringgit to her husband's bail fund when she was at an EON Bank branch to open a new account for Raja Petra as his bailor.
“I heard from my childhood friend that well-wishers from the court and others had given a ringgit each to raise RM152 for him,” she added.
At the court office, Marina filled up and passed the bail documents to an interpreter to process.
Sessions Court judge Nurmala Salim issued an order to produce Raja Petra today for his release.
He will be released Friday after he signs documents for his release at the court's bail counter.
His lawyer J. Chandra said Raja Petra would be brought to the court for his release at 9.45am.
“I met the judge in her chambers with a senior police officer at 2.30pm to try to expedite his release but she told me that they had to follow certain procedures,” he said.
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