DECEMBER 23 — In two days, Christians around the world will celebrate Christmas. The main reason for this celebration is to remember the birth of Jesus Christ and how he was sent to the world to sacrifice himself to a just God, in the place of sinners like you and me.
It is with this spirit that I reflect on the reaction towards the judgement on the validity of the Royal Addendum requesting for “house arrest” for the former Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, for the remainder of his prison sentence for the SRC case, which was reduced from 12 years to 6 years, by the Pardons Board, upon the advice of the Yang DiPertuan Agong (YDPA), on February 2, 2024.
Firstly, I think that many lawyers and legal scholars would agree with the grounds of judgement[1] by the learned judge, Alice Loke Yee Ching, of the High Court of Kuala Lumpur, that because the Addendum Order was not deliberated nor decided at the Pardons Board Meeting, hence it was not compliant with Article 42 of the Federal Constitution and thus, it is not a valid order, meaning that former Prime Minister Najib’s appeal to serve out his sentence under “house arrest” was dismissed.
Secondly, I understand that many of those who remember and are still aggrieved by the amount of public funds that were stolen as part of the 1MDB scandal are pleased that Najib still has to suffer in the Kajang prison rather than in the comfort of his home in Kenny Hills / Taman Duta.
I am also aggrieved that Najib is still taking the position that he was somehow “duped” by Jho Low, the instigator behind 1MDB, rather than to come clean with regards to how he was complicit in this scandal.
Thirdly, there is no reason to “celebrate” or “rub salt into the wound” over this judgement. Najib has already served more than three years of his jail sentence, which started on the 23rd of August 2022.
His health has been a concern that has been repeatedly raised by members of his family. Najib is the only former Prime Minister of Malaysia who has served any time in prison (Anwar Ibrahim served his jail sentences before he became Prime Minister). It is not easy for any 72-year-old to serve time in prison, more so if he is a former Prime Minister and a member of the Malaysian aristocracy.
I would feel burdened and sad if I were any of Najib’s children or grandchildren, thinking about how their father and grandfather was sitting alone in the Kajang prison while most other people are enjoying their year end break and celebrating the holidays with their family and friends.
Fourthly, our country is already divided enough over racial and religious politicking, including after the recent cabinet reshuffle. There is no need to add further “fuel to the fire” by making remarks and issuing statements that are likely to inflame such sentiments among various communities.
Such statements not only appear “tone deaf” but ignores the feelings of many in the Malay community, whom may not necessarily support Najib’s actions over 1MDB, but nonetheless do not want to see a former Prime Minister humiliated and definitely do not want to see political leaders of a party which most of them already do not like, “celebrating” the court’s decision publicly on social media.
Fifthly, such “celebratory” actions not only weaken the ability of the Madani government to function effectively for the remainder of its term over the next two years but also threatens the likelihood of an electoral agreement between Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional before and after the next general election.
Who knows, this may be one of the actions which may lead the BN to seek closer cooperation with PN in the run-up to the next election, to the detriment of PH and its supporters.
Sixthly and finally, I think it is time, perhaps in the new year in 2026, for us to start a serious conversation about the possibility of a full pardon for Najib.
When I made my first appearance on the Keluar Sekejap podcast on the 2nd of May 2023, I said that giving a full pardon to Najib would constitute a “red line” for the DAP.
More than two years on, especially after the Dismissal Not Amounting to Acquittal (DNAA) for Deputy Prime Minister, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, on the 4th of September 2023, I am less sure of that “red line”.
In fact, my own thoughts on this have been influenced by the “Grand Amnesty” proposal first made by Khairy Jamaluddin, on the 20th of August 2023, in a Keluar Sekejap episode.
This would include not just a full pardon for Najib, perhaps after the conclusion of the ongoing 1MDB case, but also dropping the ongoing cases against Lim Guan Eng and Muhyiddin Yassin, and the ongoing government appeal in Syed Saddiq’s case as well as the attempts to go after the assets of the late Tun Daim Zainuddin.
This would make room for what KJ terms a “political reset” so that we can stop the process of going after our political rivals using the instruments of the state once one side is in power.
In my naïve and idealistic thinking, I am hoping that this may be part of the process for greater political maturity that is much needed for this country.
In the spirit of Christmas, may we forgive, but not necessarily forget, in the hope of the larger goal of reconciliation, so that we may slowly but surely make Malaysia a better country for us and those who will come after us.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
