DAP urges government to make Najib’s pardon board minutes public

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 1 — DAP has urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to release the minutes of the Federal Territories Pardons Board (FTPB) meeting regarding former prime minister Najib Razak’s conditional pardon.

DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke said that while the party hopes the minutes will be declassified, it understands that the final decision rests with the attorney-general.

“We have conveyed our request to the prime minister, but there are procedures to declassify the minutes,” Loke said in a FMT report.

Speaking earlier at the Federal Territories DAP convention, Loke acknowledged that Najib’s conditional pardon has sparked significant public questioning.

He said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Hannah Yeoh, a board member, had clearly communicated the party’s stance against house arrest for those involved in major corruption scandals.

“Someone involved in a major corruption scandal should not be released or granted house arrest,” he maintained.

Najib was imprisoned in August 2022 after the Federal Court upheld convictions for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust, and money laundering involving RM42 million in SRC funds. He received a 12-year sentence and a RM210 million fine.

In January 2024, then Yang diPertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah halved Najib’s jail term and reduced the fine to RM50 million.

Later, in September this year, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, granted a further conditional pardon allowing Najib to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until 23 August 2028, provided he pays the RM50 million fine and meets other conditions.

Najib has not yet paid the fine, though Umno has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help the former president settle the debt.

Support for Bersatu stability deal

Turning to government stability, Loke confirmed that DAP supports the confidence and supply agreement (CSA) with six Bersatu MPs, noting that the Pakatan Harapan presidential council has endorsed the deal.

He explained that the agreement, formally a memorandum of understanding (MoU), is open to all opposition MPs to ensure political stability without requiring them to formally join the government.

Loke drew a parallel to a similar MoU signed between PH and then prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob in 2021.

“That did not mean we supported Ismail at the time. We simply wanted to prevent attempts to bring down the government,” he clarified.

Loke added that the current agreement aims to prevent a return to the political turmoil of 2020, while reiterating DAP’s demand for the institutionalisation of equal allocations for all MPs.