By Olivia Miwil
KOTA KINABALU: A teacher at SMKA Tun Datu Mustapha said she felt guilty for not submitting documents that could have assisted the police investigation into the death of Zara Qairina Mahathir.
The 53rd witness, Nur Shukriah Mohd Fauzi, said she only became aware of the importance of handing over the documents to the authorities after appearing before the Coroner's Court last month.
Her testimony about the student statements from the internal investigation, which had been kept at the school, drew attention in court.
"Since it was not requested, we did not want to interfere. But personally, I do feel guilty, and I feel it was my mistake," said the recalled witness when lawyer Farrah Nasser questioned her.
The disciplinary teacher also agreed with Farrah's question that school management had instructed staff not to disclose anything to outsiders, including the police and Zara's mother, about what happened at the school.
Earlier, Shukriah had told lawyer Clarice Vyonne Conrad that at the time, staff were following instructions from superiors not to submit the investigation to the police.
Shukriah: We did not provide the statements because we were worried about bias, being accused of tampering with documents, or having them misinterpreted by others.
Clarice: Is there any Ministry of Education (KPM) guideline stating that the police cannot receive supporting documents from the school voluntarily to assist in their investigation?
Shukriah: What is stated is that the authorities may be given the documents only upon official request.
Both Farrah and Clarice are representing Zara's family members.
The inquest is scheduled to resume later.
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