KJ: Melaka polls may offer first glimpse of political impact from Najib pardon

 

Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin. NSTP File pic

KUALA LUMPUR: The Melaka election could provide an early indication of how the political landscape responds to the conditional pardon granted to former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, says Khairy Jamaluddin.

Speaking on the latest episode of the Keluar Sekejap podcast, Khairy, better known as KJ, said the election would be the first major electoral development where the political and public reaction to Najib's house arrest could be observed.

The former Umno youth chief described the Melaka poll as a potential "first key data point" following the latest development involving Najib.

"I think that will be the first key data point. Because when Melaka comes, all of this will already be priced in.

"The rakyat would have had time to digest Najib's release, what happened at the Umno General Assembly and the decision in Melaka," he said.

Khairy said the response in Melaka could provide an early indication of whether the development had changed the political equation for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and other parties.

The Federal Territories Pardons Board on Sept 18 granted Najib a conditional pardon allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, subject to payment of a RM50 million fine.

The decision came shortly after the Umno General Assembly, where party leaders openly challenged the direction of the Unity Government.

Khairy said Najib's conditional pardon could create a new variable for both Anwar and Umno, particularly after the political momentum surrounding the two sides had appeared to move in a particular direction.

"I don't say this will hurt or help any side, but it is a moment of discontinuity that reopens the debate a bit, reopens the calculation," he said.

Former Umno information chief Shahril Sufian Hamdan, who co-hosts the podcast with Khairy, similarly said the development could alter how political parties position themselves and how voters respond to competing narratives around Najib, the Unity Government and the opposition.

Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh said on Sept 17 that the date for the dissolution of the state assembly had not yet been fixed, although he indicated that preparations for the election were already underway. - NST