YESTERDAY (Dec 22), former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak failed to swap prison for house arrest as the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed his judicial review bid over a royal addendum for house arrest.
High Court judge Justice Alice Loke ruled that the deliberation by the Board was vital under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.
I think that many lawyers and legal scholars would agree with the grounds of judgement by the learned judge because the Addendum Order was not deliberated nor decided at the Pardons Board Meeting, hence it was not compliant with Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.
That said, the Addendum Order is not a valid order, meaning that the former premier’s appeal to serve out his sentence under “house arrest” was dismissed.
Many remember and are still aggrieved by the amount of public funds that were stolen as part of the 1MDB scandal are pleased that Najib still has to suffer in the Kajang prison rather than in the comfort of his home in Kenny Hills/Taman Duta.
I am also aggrieved that Najib is still taking the position that he was somehow “duped” by Jho Low, the instigator behind 1MDB, rather than to come clean with regards to how he was complicit in this scandal.
Furthermore, there is no reason to “celebrate” or “rub salt into the wound” over this judgement. Najib has already served more than three years of his jail sentence, which started on Aug 23, 2022.
His health has been a concern that has been repeatedly raised by members of his family. Najib is the only former prime minister who has served any time in prison (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim served his jail sentences before he became prime minister).
It is not easy for any 72-year-old to serve time in prison, more so if he is a former prime minister and a member of the Malaysian aristocracy.
I would feel burdened and sad if I were any of Najib’s children or grandchildren, thinking about how their father and grandfather was sitting alone in the Kajang prison while most other people are enjoying their year end break and celebrating the holidays with their family and friends.
Our country is already divided enough over racial and religious politicking, including after the recent cabinet reshuffle. There is no need to add further “fuel to the fire” by making remarks and issuing statements that are likely to inflame such sentiments among various communities.
Such statements not only appear “tone deaf” but ignores the feelings of many in the Malay community, whom may not necessarily support Najib’s actions over 1MDB, but nonetheless do not want to see a former prime minister humiliated and definitely do not want to see political leaders of a party which most of them already do not like, “celebrating” the court’s decision publicly on social media.
Such “celebratory” actions not only weaken the ability of the Madani government to function effectively for the remainder of its term over the next two years but also threatens the likelihood of an electoral agreement between Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional (BN) before and after the next general election.
Who knows, this may be one of the actions which may lead the BN to seek closer cooperation with PN in the run-up to the next election, to the detriment of PH and its supporters.
Finally, I think it is time, perhaps in the new year in 2026, for us to start a serious conversation about the possibility of a full pardon for Najib.
When I made my first appearance on the “Keluar Sekejap” podcast on May 2, 2023, I said that giving a full pardon to Najib would constitute a “red line” for the DAP.
More than two years on, especially after the dismissal not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) for Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on Sept 4, 2023, I am less sure of that “red line”.
In fact, my own thoughts on this have been influenced by the “Grand Amnesty” proposal first made by Khairy Jamaluddin in a Keluar Sekejap episode on Aug 20, 2023.
This would include not just a full pardon for Najib, perhaps after the conclusion of the ongoing 1MDB case, but also dropping the ongoing cases against Lim Guan Eng and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, and the ongoing government appeal in Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s case as well as the attempts to go after the assets of the late Tun Daim Zainuddin.
This would make room for what Khairy terms a “political reset” so that we can stop the process of going after our political rivals using the instruments of the state once one side is in power.
In my naïve and idealistic thinking, I am hoping that this may be part of the process for greater political maturity that is much needed for this country.
In the spirit of Christmas, may we forgive, but not necessarily forget, in the hope of the larger goal of reconciliation, so that we may slowly but surely make Malaysia a better country for us and those who will come after us.
Former Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming was the deputy international trade and industry minister during the first Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.
- Focus Malaysia.
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