Was he pardoned? Malaysians fired up over ex-PM Najib’s appeal

Malaysians are all fired up over the question of whether former prime minister Najib Razak, who was jailed for corruption, has been pardoned.

And although there has been no confirmation or denial from the authorities or Najib’s family and lawyers, the speculation and news reports have released a torrent of views and ignited a raging debate - whether at coffee shops, online portals or on social media.

So much so that the noise over the question of Najib’s pardon has overwhelmed news about the installation of Malaysia’s new Yang di-Pertuan Agong, or king, - Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar - on 31 January.

I have been receiving calls and messages asking if the reports quoting sources are true; and comments too – almost all negative - about the “pardon”.

Impact on PM Anwar and the King

Many are discussing its impact on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s image and the legacy of the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, who chaired the Pardons Board meeting on 29 January.

Sultan Abdullah of Pahang has been praised for his handling of the political turmoil and instability during his five-year reign. Under the law, the Agong chairs the Federal Territories (FT) Pardons Board.

Three ministers who commented on the speculation did not answer the question as to whether it was true or not.

Government spokesman and communications minister Fahmi Fadzil, however, appealed to everyone not to "jump the gun" in reporting on the outcome of Najib’s appeal for a royal pardon until an official statement was made.

Statement to be released this week

On the morning of 1 February, minister in the Prime Minister's Department Dr Zaliha Mustafa said an official statement would be released later this week.

Zaliha sits on the FT Pardons Board as she is the minister in charge of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan. Before a Cabinet reshuffle on 12 December last year, Anwar sat on the board as the FT came under the Prime Minister’s Department and there was no specific minister to oversee it then.

The Pardons Board consists of five members: the attorney-general, the chief minister or menteri besar, and a maximum of three other members appointed by the Agong or the state Ruler. In the case of FT, the minister sits on the board as the FT does not have a menteri besar.

Najib was sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million by the High Court on 28 July, 2020 after it found him guilty of all seven charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering in relation to RM42 million belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd, a former unit of state investment arm 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

His appeals to the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court failed. During a Federal Court appeal, Chief Justice Maimun Tuan Mat, who read out the verdict, said, “This is a simple and straightforward case of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering.”

Najib’s only option then was to seek a royal pardon from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

His party UMNO – he was previously its president - and his lawyers later announced they would be submitting applications for a royal pardon.

News of a ‘partial pardon’ starts circulating

Last 24 September, Anwar played down speculation that Najib might be granted an early royal pardon, adding that it was at the sole discretion of the Agong.

Talk of a pardon surfaced again on 9 January when Singapore-based CNA wrote that the Malaysian Pardons Board would meet at the end of the month to decide on Najib’s application for a royal pardon.

The following day, Najib’s lead counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said they were in the dark about this.

"The petition has been filed for more than 16 months and Najib has been in prison for a year and four months. As lawyers, we are more anxious about our client's position, considering his sole ground for his request for pardon was on the basis that he had never received a fair trial.

"We are therefore dumbfounded as to how CNA has speculated this unfounded news."

Then, on 30 January, Malay news daily Utusan Malaysia, quoting sources, reported that the Pardons Board had, the day earlier, decided to pardon Najib.

Within hours, however, it issued a retraction, saying it was doing so “due to unverified facts”. It added, “We extend our sincere apologies to our readers."

But by then people had started sharing the report on social media and a few other news portals wrote stories quoting the Utusan Malaysia report.

Malaysians went into overdrive, sharing their views about the “pardon” and about justice, rule of law, and Anwar Ibrahim’s promise to fight corruption.

On 31 January, CNA followed up with a report saying Najib’s jail sentence had been reduced from 12 to six years by the Pardons Board following its meeting on 29 January.

Quoting sources, including senior government officials, the report by Leslie Lopez said the “partial pardon” included a reduction of his RM210 million fine to an unspecified amount.

Malaysians react to news of a pardon

More Malaysians went online to share their views, most of them saying it will make a mockery of justice and Anwar’s anti-corruption drive.

Some said if Najib’s sentence could be halved, then it would be an injustice not to also reduce the sentences of other ordinary criminals.

Outspoken playwright and author Kee Thuan Chye, for instance, said Najib had neither expressed remorse nor served enough time to “deserve a hearing for a pardon”.

He was also against reducing Najib’s sentence, adding, “Commuting his sentence would be showing utter disregard and disrespect for our judicial process.”

He asked if the message sent would be, “That you can be corrupt and still be exonerated?”

Kadir Jasin, a former group editor-in-chief of the New Straits Times and a close friend of Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Daim Zainuddin, suggested that all prisoners who were not on death row or serving a life sentence be accorded the same treatment as Najib.

He said it would be unfair to reduce the sentences of big shots but maintain that of some ordinary guy who stole to feed his children.

He said the people suffered the greatest loss because it was public money that was stolen. The government, he added, had to use tax payer money to settle the RM50 billion-plus 1MDB debt.

Comedian Douglas Lim uploaded a video clip about the “Pandan Board” on X.

Tongues will continue to wag

And I received even more messages. One of them wrote, “I am lost for words if this is indeed true. It’s a mockery of the nation’s laws. I give up.”

Most of them, again, wanted to know if the CNA report was accurate.

I told them I did not know, but since neither the government nor Najib and his lawyers had denied it, there was probably some truth to it.

Also, I have previously worked with the writer of the CNA story, Leslie Lopez, and I know that he has excellent sources.

So, for now, Malaysians have to be patient and wait for official word from the Pardons Board.

In the meantime, tongues will continue to wag, or rather fingers will continue to pound the keyboards.

A.Kathirasen is a veteran Malaysian journalist/editor who has been writing columns, with breaks, in newspapers and online since 1981. All views expressed are the writer's own.

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