Najib said to seek 1MDB pardon as Anwar’s coalition pushes back

MALAYSIA’S jailed former premier Najib Razak is seeking another royal intervention in his corruption conviction linked to the multibillion dollar 1MDB scandal, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that’s drawn opposition from Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition.

Najib’s pardon application is on the agenda for a meeting scheduled this Friday (Sep 11) by the country’s Pardons Board, which is headed by the Malaysian king, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information is private. 

A consideration for house arrest is also on the agenda, two of the people said.

Najib’s lawyer and an aide didn’t respond to requests for comment. Hannah Yeoh, a cabinet minister who sits on the Pardons Board, also didn’t respond to a request for comment. A representative for the national palace didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Chinese daily Sin Chew first reported about Najib’s new pardon application on Tuesday.

The former premier remains influential in the United Malays National Organisation, one of the country’s oldest and biggest parties. It’s also a crucial partner in Anwar’s government, making his fate a source of tension for the premier.

Najib may return to politics if he’s pardoned and allowed out of jail, his lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said last year.

Any fresh royal intervention risks widening divisions between UMNO, which has pressured for Najib’s release, and Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan alliance, whose rise to power was fuelled in part by public anger over the 1MDB scandal.

Pakatan Harapan said in a statement late on Tuesday that those convicted of corruption or abuse of power, particularly in high-profile cases, should serve the full sentences imposed by the courts, without naming Najib specifically. 

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Any decision involving such cases should also take into account public confidence in Malaysia’s commitment to reform and fighting corruption, it said.

Ongoing judicial proceedings should be allowed to run their course independently and without creating the perception that other considerations have preempted the legal process, it added. BLOOMBERG