‘Umno will respect King in pursuing Najib’s full pardon’

PUTRAJAYA: While Umno will continue to seek a full pardon for former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, it will be done with utmost respect for His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that in pursuing the matter, all parties must respect the decision made by the Pardons Board.

“Any individual, including lawyers, must respect the decision. On our part, we can take further action and pursue other legal means.

“Umno will continue to seek a full royal pardon for Najib. We will do it with utmost respect to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong,” he said after attending the Rural and Regional Development Ministry monthly assembly here yesterday.

The Umno president said the party is continuing its pursuit of a full royal pardon at the request of Najib and his family.

On Wednesday, Najib’s lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said the former prime minister would be submitting a new bid for a full royal pardon.

“The reason we want to make another request (for a pardon) is that we don’t think the Pardons Board operated in a way the Federal Constitution expected them to.”

Najib’s first pardon application was put forth by his defence team shortly after the Federal Court dismissed his final appeal against his conviction.

The team claimed that Najib did not receive a fair trial when the apex court refused to adjourn the appeal hearing after he had appointed new lawyers to represent him.

Muhammad Shafee said the new application had sufficient grounds, including the “unclear processes” of the Pardons Board.

On Feb 2, the Federal Territories Pardons Board halved Najib’s 12-year jail term to six years and reduced his fine from RM210mil to RM50mil.

Najib, 70, who has been serving his jail sentence at the Kajang Prison since Aug 23, 2022, after being convicted of misappropriating RM42mil in SRC International funds, filed the petition for a royal pardon on Sept 2, 2022.

On July 28, 2020, the High Court sentenced him to 12 years in jail and a RM210mil fine after finding him guilty of three counts of criminal breach of trust and one charge of abusing his position.

His appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal in 2021. On Aug 23, 2022, it was again dismissed by the Federal Court.

On March 30 last year, another Federal Court panel, in a 4-1 decision, dismissed his application for leave to review the case, leaving only a royal pardon as his last avenue for freedom.