Najib doesn't know when Pardons Board will hear his bid - Shafee

Even Najib Abdul Razak has no idea if the Pardons Board is sitting this month to hear his pardon bid, said the ex-prime minister’s lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

Responding to a Channel News Asia report earlier today claiming the board would be sitting this month, the lawyer questioned how the media organisation could obtain this information as such sittings are conducted with a high level of secrecy.

“We as lawyers of Najib have never been informed (consistent with other cases) of the steps taken by the Pardons Board (if any) pertaining to our client’s petition for pardon.

“We are therefore left dumbfounded as to how CNA has speculated this unfounded news,” Shafee (above) said in a statement this afternoon.

The Federal Territories Pardons Board comprises the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, federal territories minister, attorney-general, and three members appointed by the Agong.

The veteran lawyer explained that the names of those appointed to the board are kept secret and the dates of their meetings are not publicised.

“It is obvious therefore, if the Pardons Board were to assemble to consider Najib’s application for his pardon, the matter would be undertaken in secrecy as it is governed by the Official Secrets Act 1972,” Shafee said.

He remarked that CNA had relied on unnamed sources to produce a “sensational” story.

“It may (shed) light if we can say in an unequivocal way that Najib himself is clueless of the claims by CNA,” he said.

The lawyer reminded the media that it is disrespectful to second-guess the activities of the Pardons Board.

He said the board must work in absolute secrecy to effectively advise the Agong, whose power to grant pardon is unfettered and absolute per Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.

“Breaches of this confidentiality and secrecy arguably can infringe the Official Secrets Act 1972, with the accompanying range of punishments prescribed therein,” Shafee said.

Report of upcoming meeting

Earlier today, CNA reported that the Pardons Board could decide on Najib’s application for a royal pardon later this month.

According to the report, the bid by the jailed former Umno president would be heard at a meeting of the board scheduled for the third week of January.

The matter was reportedly deferred from a meeting last month as the six-member board decided it needed more time to deliberate.

The upcoming meeting will be among Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah’s final tasks before he is replaced by Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar at the end of this month.

The Agong will have the final say on the pardon of convicted criminals.

CNA quoted a senior member of Najib’s inner circle saying there are “positive vibes” about the pardon petition, should the bid be heard at this month’s meeting.

The pardon concerns the RM42 million SRC International corruption case against former finance minister Najib, whereby he has been serving a 12-year jail sentence since the apex court upheld his guilty verdict in August 2022.

He still faces a few ongoing criminal court cases, among them the RM2.27 billion 1MDB graft trial.

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