Pardons Board decision on Najib hits Umno hard

THE first sign of a crisis in Umno on Friday night was the cancellation of the bumiputra economic colloquium scheduled for the next day.

This was after news broke that Datuk Seri Najib Razak had not been granted a pardon but given a sentence reduction from 12 years to six years.

Bossku’s hardcore supporters were incredulous and furious and the sentiment spread rapidly down the line. The Najib family is also said to be deeply disheartened.

Everyone could see the perfect storm heading towards the party headquarters.

On the other side of the political fence, a different kind of rage was boiling over.

The Pakatan Harapan base saw it as the ultimate betrayal for their unwavering support.

This was perhaps most vividly apparent in former DAP parliamentarian Tony Pua’s social media. Pua had played a leading role in hammering away at the 1MDB scandal and he was at his cynical best in mocking the Pardons Board decision.

There has been an indignant outcry from the Pakatan base which did not hold back in running down the decision, with some resorting to colourful vocabulary.

It was quite apparent by last week that a pardon was not on the table. A pardon for a crime that the government is still paying for and which has been turned into books and even a Netflix show would have done irreparable damage to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

But Bossku’s supporters had demanded no less than a full pardon whereas the Pakatan base wanted Najib to serve out his sentence.

Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is bearing the brunt of the disappointment and anger in his party.

He is being scolded and even cursed in some Umno chatgroups and there are renewed calls for him to resign.

Hundreds of delegates had arrived in town for Saturday’s bumiputra colloquium that would draw up ideas and proposals for the Bumiputra Economic Congress on Feb 29.

“I was about to sleep when I got an SMS that the colloquium was cancelled and nobody could explain to me why,” said a delegate from out of state.

Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Ghani, the chairman of the colloquium, was officially informed at about 11pm Friday night.

The speculation is that Ahmad Zahid, who was scheduled to address the colloquium, was afraid that the gathering of 3,000 delegates from 191 Umno divisions would turn into a bashing session and that he would be at the centre of it all.

Umno has to bear the brunt of being unable to keep its promise to free Najib. It cannot blame Pakatan which won seats riding on the 1MDB issue.

In fact, Pakatan leaders are now facing pressure and condemnation from their own base for going soft on the “kleptocrat”.

Law Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said is also in the crosshairs of the Bossku group.

Najib loyalist Isham Jalil took to Facebook to criticise Azalina for repeatedly telling people that the decision is the prerogative of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

He reminded her of her powerful speech at the special Umno assembly after Najib was jailed during which Azalina had said to loud applause: “If we have the power, we must use it to help our leader otherwise we are stupid.”

“What is the point of being in government and having the deputy prime minister post if Umno cannot do more for Najib?” said Isham who was recently sacked from Umno.

The supreme council which held an emergency meeting yesterday morning has attributed the decision to the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong although it was widely claimed that Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah had been inclined towards a royal pardon.

A well-placed source said the top Umno leadership knew as early as five days ago that Najib would not be pardoned.

Ahmad Zahid was said to be so upset that he had cried and his office had to cancel several of his appointments.

Some have suggested that Umno should have tried to manage expectations in the party instead of letting the dream of a full pardon get out of hand.

But who would have dared to tell Umno members that a pardon is not realistic?

One of the reasons why many in Umno wanted Najib freed is because they think that he can help persuade at least 20% of Umno members to come back and support the party and help Umno stay alive in the next general election

It is not because they want him to lead Umno, they want him to help Umno recover.

Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Alwi Che Ahmad had also tried to placate those hurling abuse at Umno leaders.

In a video message, he held up his last three fingers, saying the middle finger (jari hantu) represented those who could not be bothered about the issue while the ring finger (jari manis) represented those in Pakatan who are against a pardon.

He said the last and shortest finger (jari kelingking) represented Umno which means that the pro-pardon group is outnumbered by those who are against or indifferent.

But emotions are running high and people are not in the mood for rational arguments.

Some pointed out that Anwar was already waist-deep in murky water after Ahmad Zahid was granted the DNAA. Had Najib been pardoned, the water would have reached Anwar’s neck.

Ahmad Zahid is also wading in dangerous water. He has the overwhelming support of the supreme council but what about the sea of Umno members out there?

The clemency for Najib has turned into one of those rare events that enraged opposite sides of the fence for vastly different reasons.

The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own.