Kota Kinabalu: The year 2025 will be remembered in Sabah for two defining cases that shook public confidence and dominated headlines namely, the death of teenager Zara Qairina Mahathir and the corruption prosecution of two assemblymen following explosive revelations by a whistleblower that took a twist when the accuser denied giving bribes.
Zara’s death sparked an outpouring of grief and outrage, placing the spotlight on alleged bullying and institutional accountability.
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Zara, 13, was found unconscious on the grounds of the SMKA Tun Mustapha’s hostel in Kinarut, Papar at 3am on July 16, 2025 but died on the following day at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital 1, here.
Following her death, it escalated into a national issue, prompting calls for justice and transparency from the public.
Several gathering #JusticeForZara had carried out throughout Sabah and also in the peninsula as well as other countries.
The incident also became the hot topics among the leaders throughout the country during assembly in parliament.
In response to mounting pressure, Zara’s body was exhumed to allow further forensic examination.
This was followed by a coroner’s inquest in which about 57 deponents including children had so far gave thier testimony.
The inquest proceedings were later adjourned to January next year to allow the Children’s Court to proceed with the trial of five teenagers charged with bullying-related offences connected to Zara’s incident.
As the legal process continued, the case triggered broader conversations on student welfare, mental health, and the need for stricter anti-bullying measures in schools.
In related to Zara’s incident, they were several people, one of them were former Chief Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, were charged with contempt of court as well as other offences.
Shafie had alleged to be the contempner following his alleged remarks over the death of Zara.
His case is still pending trial which had set next year.
A former headmaster was also charged with threatening to cause hurt to a Phatalogist who testified as a deponent in the Zara’s inquest.
The headmaster admitted to the charge against him and was sentenced accordingly.
Meanwhile, another case which became the spotlight for this year involved two former assemblymen Datuk Andi Muhammad Suryady Bandy and Datuk Dr Yusof Yacob charged with receiving bribes amounting to RM350,000 over applications to obtain mineral exploration licences in Sabah, following the revelation by whistleblower Albert Tei.
The case stemmed from a viral video posted by Tei, which quickly spread on social media and led to formal investigations by enforcement agencies.
The video, which captured alleged wrongdoing, became one of the most widely shared clips of the year, fuelling public debate on governance, integrity and the role of whistleblowers in exposing corruption.
Tei also was charged with giving bribes to Andi and Dr Yusof.
Their cases are still pending trial.
