Lawyers have expressed concern that Attorney-General Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh will drop convicted former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s other charges after his punishment in the SRC International case was reduced.
Lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdulla said nothing is impossible now when it comes to the former premier.
“In light of what has happened with the pardon (application), it gives rise to the belief that anything may happen to Najib,” he told Malaysiakini.
“Is the AG going to play a part? That’s for him to answer.
"Terrirudin is a member of the Pardons Board. What did he do? Was his view it should or should not be allowed? Or was he neutral?
“We don’t know. He has not come out with a statement,” Haniff (above) added.
In justifying his concerns, Haniff cited Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s Yayasan Akalbudi case, in which the latter was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) in September last year.
This was despite the prosecution establishing prima facie (answerable case), several witnesses giving evidence against Zahid and the defence being close to completion, Haniff said.
“Yet, they dropped the charges at that late stage.
“So, to me, it will not be surprising as a practising lawyer, as a Malaysian, I will not be surprised if he (the AG) is asked to drop the charges,” he commented.
Still in the dark
Lawyer and Muda co-founder Lim Wei Jiet also cited the precedent set by Zahid's DNAA as cause for concern when it comes to Najib.
Further, he told Malaysiakini that Malaysians are still in the dark regarding the government's position in the Pardons Board's decision and the entire pardon process in general.
“If, for example, it did play a role in securing the reduction of the jail and fine sentence due to political necessity, you can't blame people for suspecting the same will be applied to other cases.
“Zahid's DNAA has already set such an unfortunate precedent, it's not a red line anymore for some quarter," he said.
Lim said if the AG were to drop Najib’s other charges, it would be a betrayal of the country’s justice system and would demonstrate the existence of double standards.
“It will send a message that it is okay to commit a crime, no matter how brazen or big, as long as you have the necessary political cables to pull,” he added.
Last Friday, the Pardons Board announced its decision to halve Najib’s jail time from 12 years to six.
It also reduced his fine from RM210 million to RM50 million.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa said the decision by the Pardons Board to reduce Najib’s sentence was a collective one.
Najib was sent to Kajang Prison after being convicted in the RM42 million SRC International corruption case.
The 12-year sentence and conviction were meted out by the High Court and upheld by the Court of Appeal and Federal Court.
Parole
If Najib’s charges in the 1MDB case were dropped, Haniff said it would only be the beginning as it could pave the way for parole in the SRC International case.
Najib is facing trial on four counts of abuse of power and 21 counts of money laundering involving RM2.27 billion from 1MDB.
Haniff explained that the hurdle in the way of Najib’s application for parole in the sentence he is serving is the 1MDB case, as a prisoner cannot be considered for parole until after the final decision in any other pending court cases.
This is according to Section 46E(4) of the Prison Act 1995.
The lawyer said if the Parole Board agrees, a convict could be allowed to serve the remainder of their sentence at home.
That is something that certain Umno leaders, such as former leader Isham Jalil, are already calling for, he added.
“So, with Umno behind Najib, and Umno being a party in the coalition government, I would think there would be a lot of pressure in the government,” Haniff opined.
However, Najib would be prevented from holding leadership positions in Umno and contesting in elections due to his conviction, he added. - Mkini
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