KUALA LUMPUR - Jailed former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has mounted a legal bid to get the government to produce a purported document signed by the country’s previous king.
If its existence is proven, the addendum will allow the 70-year-old to serve the remainder of his reduced six-year sentence under house arrest instead of in prison.
In the latest development on April 4, Najib’s lead counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah told the High Court that a “crucial witness” would back up the former premier’s application for judicial review over the addendum, which Najib claims was granted by the previous king, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah.
The witness, thus far unnamed, would be filing an affidavit after Hari Raya Aidilfitri to support the former premier’s bid to seek access to the alleged addendum, said Mr Shafee at the first hearing on April 4 held regarding Najib’s application for judicial review.
In his application filed on April 1, he claimed that there was an addendum order allowing for house arrest from the then King, which was attached to the commuted sentence he received on Jan 29 for graft linked to the SRC International corruption case.
However, this addendum order that he is seeking had been concealed by the federal government and the Federal Territories Pardons Board, alleged Najib in a copy of the judicial review bid filed with Malaysia’s High Court.
Responding on April 4, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said he had no knowledge of the royal addendum regarding Najib, and that he is not a member of the Pardons Board.
The Pardons Board’s process and discussions are secret as it is protected by the Official Secrets Act. But the board’s decisions, which it will have to put on record, are considered privileged documents and, therefore, are not to be regarded as a secret because these decisions have to be communicated to the applicant, said senior constitutional lawyer Rajan Navaratnam, explaining the legal process relating to the case.
In his April 1 application, Najib also said he had received “clear information” that Sultan Abdullah had issued an order stipulating that he would be allowed to serve his term under house arrest instead of at Kajang Prison, where he currently is. The statement did not detail how Najib received this information.
He is also seeking a mandamus order to compel several respondents, such as the Home Minister, the commissioner-general of prisons and the attorney-general, to provide the original version of the royal addendum, including the costs, and any other relief deemed fit by the court.
If the royal addendum that Najib is referring to does exist, the High Court will have the power to compel the respondents to disclose this, said Datuk Seri Rajan, “(after which) the decree by the former king is to be enforced accordingly”.
Najib has so far served 18 months in prison for misappropriating RM42 million (S$12 million) belonging to SRC International, a former subsidiary of troubled state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). He has exhausted all legal avenues of appeal and can be released from prison only by a royal pardon from Malaysia’s King.
The Pardons Board on Jan 29 decided to halve Najib’s 12-year jail sentence for the SRC International corruption case to six years, and reduced the RM210 million fine to RM50 million. Following the reduction of his sentence, he is expected to be freed from prison on Aug 23, 2028.
The addendum that Najib is referring to has not been confirmed by the authorities. But if the former premier is found to have lied in any judicial proceedings, he could be punished with up to seven years’ jail and a fine under Section 193 of Malaysia’s Penal Code.
In an affidavit filed with the application, Najib said he had informed both the previous king and the current King of Malaysia, Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, via a letter dated March 25 about his intention to file the notice of application for a judicial review regarding the royal addendum.
Filing a false affidavit could also result in contempt of court proceedings, a jail term and fine.
Najib faces another three ongoing criminal cases. He is accused of illicitly receiving US$681 million (S$917 million) of 1MDB funds via British Virgin Islands shell company Tanore Finance, laundering RM27 million belonging to SRC International, and committing breach of trust involving RM6.6 billion in government funds paid to Abu Dhabi’s government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company.
