Bersih chairperson Faisal Abdul Aziz has questioned the fairness of granting clemency to former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak while Malaysians continue to shoulder billions of ringgit in 1MDB-related debt and his separate corruption case remains unresolved.
In a document titled "Risalah al-Muluk" (Epistle to the Malay rulers), dated Nov 13, Faisal appealed to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar and the Malay rulers to reflect on the decision, which he said did not fully uphold the principles of justice and fairness.
Faisal's epistle comes three days after Najib was transferred from Kajang Prison to his Kuala Lumpur residence on Nov 10 to serve the remainder of his SRC International sentence under house arrest.
He pointed to the government's RM51.4 billion in 1MDB-related debt, warning that its financial consequences would continue to burden future generations.
While acknowledging that every convicted individual has the right to seek a pardon, he argued that Najib's application should have been deferred until all his ongoing legal proceedings had concluded.
He also drew on Islamic teachings and traditional Malay political thought to remind the Malay rulers of their responsibility to uphold justice regardless of a person's social standing, lineage, religion, or race.
Citing Islamic scholar Imam Al-Ghazali, Faisal argued that a ruler's devotion to God must be reflected in fair treatment of the people. He also referred to "Bustan Al-Salatin", a classical Malay text by Sheikh Nuruddin Ar-Raniri, which warns rulers against supporting oppression.
Faisal said he hoped his appeal would remind the Malay rulers to consider how their decisions could affect the country and its people.
He ended the document with a declaration: "Dissent is not rebellion; voicing concerns is not treason."
Palace stance and legal context
On Nov 7, Sultan Ibrahim stressed that the royal prerogative of mercy under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution must be respected.
In a statement issued by Istana Negara, the king warned that disputing the implementation of a pardon after its conditions had been fulfilled could amount to disobeying the royal decree.
The Attorney-General's Chambers subsequently clarified that seeking a judicial interpretation of a pardon did not constitute a challenge to the king's constitutional powers.
The conditional pardon applies only to Najib's SRC International sentence and does not affect his separate 1MDB conviction.
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The arrangement followed a conditional pardon granted by Sultan Ibrahim in September, after an earlier royal pardon in 2024 halved Najib's 12-year prison sentence to six years and reduced his RM210 million fine to RM50 million.
Najib's conviction on seven charges involving RM42 million in SRC International funds was upheld by the Federal Court in August 2022.
He was separately convicted by the High Court last December on four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving 1MDB funds.
Najib was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined RM11.38 billion. His appeal against the conviction is pending. - Mkini
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