KUALA LUMPUR: The Home Ministry and the Prisons Department are awaiting official written notification regarding the Pardons Board’s decision on Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s conditional pardon before taking further action, says Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
The Home Minister said the official document, usually issued by the Prime Minister’s Department’s Legal Affairs Division as the board's secretariat, is needed to clarify the specific terms and legal mechanics of any home detention order.
“We want to see whether the Pardons Board specifies the designated premises or leaves the execution details to the Prisons Department,” Saifuddin told reporters in Kulim, Kedah, on Saturday (Sept 19). "We need to examine the letter first to determine the exact conditions attached."
He noted this process mirrors the board's previous decision, which commuted the former prime minister’s 12-year sentence in the SRC International case to six years and reduced his RM210mil fine to RM50 mil. Under those terms, Najib’s release date is set for Aug 23, 2028, or Aug 23, 2029, if the fine remains unpaid.
Addressing queries on whether Malaysia possesses a legal framework for home detention, Saifuddin confirmed that no specific house arrest legislation currently exists.
However, he revealed that the Cabinet has granted policy agreement in principle to draft and table a House Arrest Bill in Parliament, primarily aimed at curbing chronic prison overcrowding.
"Malaysia’s 41 prisons currently hold about 93,000 inmates against a total capacity of 75,000," Saifuddin explained.
He pointed out that a significant portion of the prison population consists of remand detainees who either face non-bailable offences or cannot afford bail. If enacted, the proposed law would allow select remand prisoners to be detained at home under electronic monitoring while awaiting trial, aligning Malaysia with international penal practices.
