Former law minister says Najib’s house arrest application was legally flawed as the purported royal addendum did not follow proper Pardons Board procedure.
PETALING JAYA: The High Court was bound by law to dismiss Najib’s application to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest because the bid was legally flawed from the outset, said former de facto law minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.
Nazri said the outcome was inevitable as the purported royal addendum relied upon by Najib failed to comply with mandatory procedures governing decisions of the Pardons Board.
The former Umno vice-president said any decision involving a royal pardon or conditions attached to it must be deliberated and approved by a full quorum of the Pardons Board during a properly convened meeting.
“All decisions must be made by a full quorum of the Pardons Board. It cannot be an afterthought,” Nazri told theSun when contacted.
He explained that the alleged addendum allowing Najib to serve his sentence under house arrest did not meet this basic legal requirement.
“The addendum given to Najib was added after the sentence reduction, making it an afterthought,” he said, adding that such a process is not recognised under the law.
Asked whether Najib could pursue the matter at the Court of Appeal, Nazri said the decision now rested entirely with the former prime minister.
“That is up to Najib. He has the right to appeal but he must first seek leave from the court to do so,” he said.
Meanwhile, Umno Youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh said the public was capable of judging the controversy surrounding the alleged addendum decree, which the court has now ruled invalid, despite it having remained out of public knowledge for a prolonged period.
He said this was notwithstanding an earlier statement by the Pahang Palace confirming that the addendum decree had been issued by the Sultan of Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah when he was serving as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
“A decree of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is now said to be invalid by the court after being concealed for such a long time,” Akmal wrote on his Facebook page.
He pointed to what he described as an inconsistency in how royal decrees have been treated, noting that in the past, a decree by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had been used as the principal basis for the formation of a government.
“But when it comes to this issue today, the decree is suddenly said to be invalid,” he said, adding that such contradictions would not go unnoticed by the public.
“The people are able to assess and judge for themselves.”
However, Akmal declined to comment further when contacted.
