Umno hopeful Malaysia ex-PM Najib will secure royal pardon

[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia’s former ruling party United Malays National Organisation is hopeful of a positive outcome from former Prime Minister Najib Razak’s latest bid for a royal pardon, party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said. 

“We hope for the best,” Zahid, who is also deputy prime minister, told reporters on the sidelines of Umno’s annual party assembly in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (Sep 10). “I am confident His Majesty’s discretion and wisdom will determine the final decision,” he added. 

Najib’s pardon application is on the agenda for Friday’s meeting of the country’s Pardons Board, which is headed by Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. A consideration for house arrest is also on the agenda.

Hannah Yeoh, a Cabinet minister who sits on the board, confirmed it will meet at 8:30 am in Kuala Lumpur on Friday (Sep 11), declining to provide further details, Free Malaysia Today reported on Thursday. 

Najib remains a popular figure in Umno despite stepping down as party president in 2018 and spending the past four years in prison. The party has repeatedly pushed for his release or a royal pardon, making his fate a sensitive issue within Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s ruling coalition.

A pardon or house arrest could strengthen Zahid’s standing within Umno, but risks widening tensions with Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan alliance. Umno is a key partner in Anwar’s government.

Pakatan said late 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. 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.

Umno Secretary-General Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki on Wednesday claimed that Pakatan was “disputing” the King’s prerogative over pardons with its statement. “Umno does not intend to pre-empt the Pardons Board’s consideration or demand certain outcomes,” Asyraf said in a statement.

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

Najib has been in jail since 2022 after being convicted for crimes related to the 1MDB scandal. His sentence was halved in 2024 to six years by Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, Malaysia’s previous king under the country’s system of rotational monarchy.

Najib also has other active 1MDB-related court proceedings. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison in a separate 1MDB case late last year and is appealing the conviction and sentence. BLOOMBERG