Projek Sama urges swift action on Najib charges, warns of DNAA misuse

Summary

• Projek Sama urges PM to take prompt steps to restore public confidence in the justice system after Najib was granted another DNAA in a case involving RM27 million linked to SRC International.

• The group warns DNAA may be used as a stepping stone toward full acquittals in high-profile corruption cases.

• Projek Sama also suggests AGC appoints top private sector legal minds as ad-hoc prosecutors and highlights that repeated DNAA rulings erode public trust.

Project Stability and Accountability for Malaysia (Projek Sama) has called on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to take immediate steps to restore public confidence in the justice system following another court decision to grant Najib Abdul Razak a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA).

The civil society group urged Anwar to direct the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) to promptly refile charges against the former prime minister over RM27 million allegedly linked to SRC International, warning that further delays could lead to full acquittals.

“Without swift and transparent action, DNAA may be used as a stepping stone toward full acquittals in high-profile corruption cases,” it said in a statement today.

Projek Sama also called for the appointment of top private sector legal minds as ad-hoc prosecutors, as was previously done with the late Gopal Sri Ram in Najib’s second SRC case.

“Is DNAA now the standard operating procedure to let Najib off?” the group asked.

Not the first time

It pointed out that this is not the first time Najib has been granted a DNAA, citing a Nov 27 decision last year involving six criminal breach of trust charges linked to RM6.6 billion in payments to International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC).

In both instances, Projek Sama said the decisions were made due to prosecutorial delays or unavailability of documents.

In the latest case, the Kuala Lumpur High Court yesterday granted Najib a DNAA on three money laundering charges after the prosecution said it was not ready to proceed, despite the charges being filed in February 2019.

“This claim is both unacceptable and deeply troubling,” said Projek Sama.

“Such systemic failures impair Malaysia’s democratic integrity, tarnish the credibility of the justice system, and hollow the principle of equality before the law.”

Erosion of public trust

Judge K Muniandy, in delivering the ruling, noted that the case had yet to see a single witness called since it began in 2019 and was marred by repeated postponements.

In response, the attorney-general said the AGC had no choice but to wait for the conclusion of Najib’s ongoing 1MDB and first SRC trials, as the second SRC case involved overlapping documents.

However, Projek Sama said repeated DNAA rulings would further erode public trust and spark concerns among the international community over possible backsliding into the institutional failings that enabled the 1MDB scandal.

The group also cited the case of former Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation (MEIO) director-general Hasanah Ab Hamid, who was fully acquitted in 2022 after her case suffered similar delays.

Projek Sama noted that despite progress in some areas of reform, crucial steps remain pending - notably the long-promised separation of powers between the attorney-general and the public prosecutor to eliminate conflicts of interest and ensure prosecutorial independence.

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