Former law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz has denied clearing former Sabah chief minister Musa Aman of graft charges in the past.

Instead, Nazri said it was the MACC which had cleared Musa.

"It was the MACC, it wasn’t me... As a minister, I cannot interfere with the MACC’s findings. My statement was based on what they wanted me to announce,” Nazri was quoted as saying by The Malaysian Insight.

Musa yesterday claimed trial to 35 charges of receiving bribes totalling US$63 million in exchange for logging contracts.

After being charged, Musa questioned why he was being charged for old cases which he had been cleared.

"Why (is it an issue) again? It was cleared by the minister in charge at the time, in Parliament, (by) Nazri... there is no case against me," he insisted.

Nazri said it was wrong for Musa to cite him as such.

“Musa shouldn’t have quoted me as I do not have power over an independent body. It was wrong of him to name me since I was only a minister,” Nazri said.

Lead prosecutor in the case, Gopal Sri Ram, said yesterday he was surprised that former attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail had not previously called for charges to be brought against Musa.

The MACC's Operations Review Panel had in 2012 requested Gani to review the decision not charge Musa for graft.