Overview
- Sultan Ibrahim and the Federal Territories Pardons Board granted Najib Razak a conditional pardon on Sept 18 allowing him to serve the remainder of his SRC International sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028 subject to a RM50 million fine and other conditions.
- The pardon is not yet in effect because Najib has not paid the RM50 million fine and has stayed in Kajang Prison while lawyers and officials say payment and other conditions must be met before any transfer to house arrest.
- Prime Minister Anwar said he warned the Pardons Board about public confidence and international perception but denied engineering the outcome while Attorney-General Dusuki clarified the pardon covers only the SRC sentence and not Najib’s other pending cases.
- Political fallout has been swift with DAP transport minister Anthony Loke announcing his resignation in protest, reports that other DAP leaders are prepared to step down, and UMNO launching a solidarity fund that raised over RM1 million within hours.
- Operational and legal hurdles remain as police and prison officers have discussed security and procedures at Najib’s residence, standard operating procedures are pending from the Prisons Department, and frozen assets and enforcement actions may complicate payment of the fine.