Yeoh on Najib pardon bid: I spoke with nation's interest in mind

 

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories) Hannah Yeoh said any views she had expressed during the Federal Territories Pardons Board meeting last Friday concerning Najib Abdul Razak had the nation's interest in mind.

This comes amid questions about why the Pardons Board had decided to defer on Najib's clemency application. She was also responding to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said said that any questions on Najib's deferred pardon bid should be referred to her.

In a statement today, Yeoh said that her views had also taken into consideration the written opinion of Attorney-General Dusuki Mokhtar on the matter.

"I have stated my views honestly, guided by my conscience and with the best interests of the nation in mind. In accordance with Article 42 of the Federal Constitution, the authority and final decision rest with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, including the decision to defer Najib's pardon bid," she said.

However, she did not divulge what exactly she had said to the Agong and the board.

Najib's pardon bid was supposed to be heard last Friday. However, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong consented to postpone the hearing of the former premier's application.

It is unclear when Najib's bid will be heard as the board has no fixed schedule.

The possibility of Najib’s application being considered recently triggered a war of words between Harapan and Umno, laying bare further fissures within the Madani government.

This followed a statement by Harapan’s presidential council which, without naming anyone, said individuals convicted of corruption or abuse of power, particularly in high-profile cases, should serve the full sentences handed down by the courts.

Najib, 72, has been in prison since August 2022 after being convicted of misappropriating RM42 million belonging to SRC International. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and slapped with a RM210 million fine.

In 2024, the Pardons Board halved his prison term to six years and reduced the fine to RM50 million.

The revised jail term for Najib’s conviction was scheduled to end by August 2028. With the one-third remission for good behaviour, he could have been out as early as last month.

However, in December last year, he was convicted of corruption for a second time and sentenced to 15 years in jail, together with a RM11.38 billion fine. - Mkini