Umno division chiefs to meet, push Anwar to enforce Najib's house arrest

Umno division chiefs are expected to convene an emergency meeting on Thursday to pressure Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim into implementing a royal addendum on former premier Najib Abdul Razak’s house arrest.

A senior Umno leader told Malaysiakini the meeting will take place at a hotel in Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur, at around 8pm.

“The main agenda is to push the prime minister to take full responsibility for implementing the house arrest addendum for Najib.

“This is because the attorney-general is the government’s legal adviser,” the leader said on condition of anonymity.

He added that the meeting will also call on divisions that have yet to hold their annual meetings to table a motion urging Anwar to enforce the royal decree, and to stop “beating around the bush” on its legitimacy under the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s constitutional prerogative.

“It will be proposed that any remaining divisions convening meetings will carry the motion urging the prime minister to implement the addendum and cease further debate on its validity under the king’s prerogative powers enshrined in the Constitution,” he said.

The meeting is also expected to press the prime minister to instruct the attorney-general to withdraw the government’s appeal at the Federal Court.

The Federal Court on July 9 reserved its verdict on the attorney-general's appeal concerning the existence of a purported additional document allegedly permitting former Najib to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest.

Senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan reportedly said the Attorney-General’s Chambers did not dispute the addendum’s existence but was challenging how it was submitted as new evidence in Najib’s judicial review application at the High Court.

On July 11, Umno formally submitted an appeal to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, urging for the royal decree on Najib’s house arrest to be enforced in line with the monarch’s constitutional authority.

Umno secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki previously expressed gratitude over confirmation of the addendum’s existence, and conveyed the party’s humble request for the decree to be executed.

“Umno expresses its gratitude to Allah for the attorney-general’s confirmation of the existence of the addendum, which in turn acknowledges the order for Najib’s house arrest.

“Umno humbly seeks forgiveness and mercy from His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for the house arrest order to be implemented under His Majesty’s absolute authority pursuant to Article 42(1) of the Federal Constitution,” he said in a statement.

Anwar responded by saying that the government respected all views regarding the royal addendum but maintained the matter was still before the courts.

“The document is subject to court proceedings,” the premier said without elaborating.

Division chiefs’ initiative

Separately, an Umno division chief who spoke to Malaysiakini confirmed the planned gathering.

“Yes, there will be a meeting on July 17. This initiative comes from us, the division chiefs.

“At the meeting, we will propose that this motion be debated at the 2025 Umno general assembly,” he said.

Thursday’s gathering will mirror a previous meeting on Aug 22, 2022, where 158 Umno division chiefs pressured then prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to dissolve Parliament.

It is understood that this upcoming session will include a virtual component to enable participation from Sabah division chiefs who are unable to attend in person.

Umno has 191 divisions nationwide.

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