Najib’s shameless, mischievous last-ditch effort to absolve himself from blame over the SRC International case is but a thinly veiled attempt to appeal to the public gallery and to rally around his supporters - who seem to have diminished visibly - to his cause, whatever that might be now.
But the nation’s interest is served only if the courts and the established legal system eventually determine Najib’s fate without being pressured by any extraneous factors.
That is the rule of law which preserves justice and accountability in any civilised society and no one - least of all Najib - should be permitted any exemption from it.
To do so would be to submit to anarchy and lawlessness and tear the fabric of social cohesion and order to bring about the destruction of the nation and its institutions. According to the law, Najib’s fate rests with the Federal Court and nothing must be allowed to challenge or change that in any way whatsoever.
The Federal Court will surely rule according to the law. They have no reason to do so otherwise. And the decision of that court must be the final one to determine whether Najib is guilty or not on these charges, once and for all.
It cannot be decided by vows made and carried live at any place of worship, it cannot be decided on by some people saying that he did not get a fair trial, it cannot be decided by Najib saying the course of the decision would have been changed if additional evidence was allowed to be adduced - and it cannot be decided outside any other place but the Federal Court.
Prepared for divine retribution, Najib swears his innocence in a mosque.
Najib has had his day - or years - at the courts during which time he has had ample time to put forward his case. The evidence has been heard. Every party has been allowed its say - fully.
Two courts - the High Court and the Court of Appeal - have already found him guilty of seven charges of misuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving RM42 million of SRC funds and have sentenced or affirmed the sentence on him of 12 years in jail and RM210 million in fines.
It is now time for the Federal Court, as part of the appeal process, to affirm Najib’s conviction or to set it aside. It must be allowed to do its job without fear or favour.
To say that an adjournment of 3-4 months must be given is wrong and it is very clear that the Federal Court can make its ruling on that. It was an abuse of process to make the last ditch of change in lawyers and demand an adjournment. If allowed, that process can continue interminably.
Justice is done in every way
The judiciary has bent over backwards - some would say even too much - to accommodate Najib’s defence and to show that justice is being done in every way possible. More than adequate time has passed.
Najib was charged in July/August 2018. The trial only began eight months later on April 3, 2019. He was found guilty by the High Court on July 28, 2020. A three-person Court of Appeal upheld the conviction on Dec 8 last year, making the Federal Court appeal his last avenue of defence.
Between the time he was charged, and the current Federal Court sitting, four years have elapsed. Certainly not a short period of time. No one can say that the judiciary has been unfair to Najib in terms of the time given.
In contrast, Malaysian Roger Ng, a Goldman Sachs employee, was charged in the US for helping embezzle billions of dollars from 1MDB on Feb 13 this year. He was found guilty less than two months later on April 8.
When Najib failed to get a new Queen’s Counsel and in his attempts to adduce “additional evidence”, he then discharged his old lawyers and appointed new ones. Then he discharged his new lawyers, too, in a blatant, brazen effort to delay the Federal Court decision.
One senior member of the Malaysian Bar, Christopher Leong, partner at CCA, told this writer: “The judiciary have shown themselves worthy. Unfortunately, a few of the members of the Bar have brought shame to the Bar and disrepute to the administration of justice. It was the other way around in 1988.”
Another senior lawyer, Gurdial Singh Nijar, described the conduct of Najib’s lawyers in the latest episode as an ultimatum to the court - “either follow us or we will scuttle the process”.
“It is highly inappropriate as it undermines the integrity of the administration of justice,'' Gurdial said.
Another leading lawyer, Nahendran Navaratnam said: “Najib was playing a game of brinksmanship with the Federal Court - intent on leaving no option but to delay the appeal. He was thwarted by a principled bench who declined to give him any special privileges.
“The conduct of his lawyers in facilitating Najib’s shenanigans is deeply disappointing. It’s one thing to disagree but to use disagreement as the only basis for accusing the bench of misconducting itself is over the line.”
As early as tomorrow, or perhaps in a short time after that, Najib’s fate will be sealed. As no new evidence has been adduced, the process may be quicker than what is generally anticipated with reliance being made upon issues already presented and filed as submissions are now over.
It is however imperative that the Federal Court, the apex court which has the final say on all judicial matters, in their collective wisdom, has the final say on Najib’s fate as far as this particular case is concerned.
Any attempt to usurp or deny the Federal Court’s powers in this respect must be resisted by all Malaysians. The nation comes first, not Najib. - Mkini
P GUNASEGARAM, a former editor at online and print news publications, and head of equity research, is an independent writer and analyst.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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