UMNO is deeply split into two factions – Zahid Hamidi and Najib Razak. In order for Zahid to continue leading the United Malays National Organization, Najib has to remain in prison. If Najib is allowed to serve his remaining jail sentence under house arrest, UMNO president Zahid will eventually lose his power and influence in the Malay nationalist party as Najib would make his move to dislodge him.

 

Najib is a threat to Zahid because the former UMNO president was more charismatic, competent and popular with the grassroots. Even Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is afraid of Najib’s return to politics once the disgraced former prime minister is freed from the prison. So, both Anwar and Zahid have a common enemy – Najib Razak – who is determined to return to power by hook or by crook.

 

However, in order for Najib to return as UMNO president so that he can lead the party and become the prime minister again, the first step is to obtain a royal pardon, or at least a royal decree for a house detention. Serving jail sentence under house arrest is definitely more glorious than in the Kajang Prison. At least, he can spin and twist that he is not a prisoner under house arrest.

Yes, a prisoner is confined within a prison, thus someone under house arrest can’t be called a prisoner. Snake oil salesman Najib can easily hoodwink his gullible supporters that he was innocent and has been unfairly prosecuted based on a twisted argument that the King had granted him a royal pardon, what more a house detention. If he was a crook, how could the monarch pardon him?

 

The whole purpose of a royal pardon was to cleanse his tainted image. It was a humiliation that Najib is the first former prime minister to be jailed in history. Unfortunately, his attempt to flee like Thailand’s former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who fled in 2008 to escape a prison term for charges of corruption, failed after being outsmarted by ex-PM Mahathir Mohamad in 2018.

 

But there’s a problem with Najib’s royal pardon – it is not a “full royal pardon”. This means he is still a prisoner even after his 12-year jail sentence has been halved. A full royal pardon will remove all legal punishments for his offences and remove any disqualifications under the law as if all his crimes have been erased and never happened. Only then Najib can claim innocence.

Therefore, the next best thing was a backdoor channel with the then-16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong – Sultan Abdullah of Pahang – to come out with a royal addendum which would allow crooked Najib to serve the remainder of his six-year prison sentence under house arrest. However, the dubious royal decree has a huge problem – there isn’t any legal provision for a house detention.

 

A house arrest is important for Najib to whitewash his image as a criminal and a prisoner. He has no problem paying top dollar to his PR team to create a narrative that he is a political prisoner, just like how Aung San Suu Kyi was put under house arrest for almost 15 years (1989 to 2010). That was precisely why Najib’s son has shamelessly compared his father’s imprisonment to that of Nelson Mandela.

 

While it’s obvious that the royal decree exists, the burning question is whether the document has actually been backdated. Chances are it was an afterthought to produce the order from the previous King, which explains why it took Najib a few months after a royal pardon to start whining, crying and bitching about the existence of a royal addendum.

There are two parts to the controversy – a royal pardon and a royal addendum. If ex-King Sultan Abdullah had indeed granted both to Najib at the eleventh hour before his tenure as Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) ended on January 30, 2024, why only the first part was executed but not the other part? PM Anwar, known for his cowardice, would not dare ignore the King’s decree.

 

Either the royal addendum was totally illegal and unconstitutional, hence unenforceable as there isn’t any provision for a house arrest in Malaysia, or the idea of the royal addendum did not arise at all on January 30, 2024. So far, Najib can’t show any proof the existence of such document, except “wild claims” that it does, which pro-Najib supporters religiously parrot like a broken record.

 

It becomes more dramatic when the Pahang Palace said last month (Dec 10, 2024) that it “will not be making any statements” on the issue due to the upcoming court case. But why can’t Sultan Abdullah of Pahang confirm or deny the existence of the royal decree which he personally rushed to sign to save Najib? This lends credence to the lack of legitimacy of the royal addendum.

A bombshell from the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) on December 28, 2024 that any request for prisoners, including former prime minister Najib Razak, to serve their sentences under house arrest must be submitted (again) to the Pardons Board, which is chaired by the current Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Sultan Ibrahim of Johor), has ruined Najib’s evil plan spectacularly.

 

Previously, we published (read here) that the new King’s decree delivered through the AGC could mean two things. First, Sultan Ibrahim might not grant Najib his wish for a house arrest until a law for such detention is in place, thus passing the ball back to Anwar administration. Second, the monarch might give Najib a “full pardon” in the absence of a house arrest provision.

 

There’s a third possibility – the King might not consider a house detention at all for Najib even if a new law for such provision is passed in the parliament, largely because the Johor Sultanate was wise enough to understand that Najib still has other corruption charges hanging over his head. That has forced UMNO to organize a rally in solidarity with Najib Razak on Jan 6 (tomorrow).

The fact that UMNO was ignoring the royal decree issued by the AGC can only mean one thing – Najib does not think his wish will be granted if a new application to the Pardons Board is made. Obviously, the rally was organized to pressure not only Anwar administration and the Court of Appeal’s hearing on Jan 6 related to the royal addendum, but also to undermine the King’s decree and authority.

 

But following a royal decree “directly” from the King and a warning from the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) on Friday (Jan 3), UMNO suddenly chicken out and cancelled its so-called mega rally despite earlier chest thumping that more than 200 busloads of Najib supporters will be mobilized to attend the rally. Zahid, who had insisted that the rally will proceed, now looks like a fool.

 

Likewise, MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association) and MIC (Malaysian Indian Congress), two component parties of Barisan Nasional, which is led by UMNO, are also caught with their pants down after the rally was suddenly aborted. Only Najib’s family members and a handful of pro-Najib supporters like UMNO Youth Chief Akmal Saleh said they will be at the Palace of Justice tomorrow to show their support.

Interestingly, even Najib so-called loyalists like Puad Zarkashi has made a U-turn and obeys the royal decree to abandon the rally. From the beginning, Zahid faction was not interested with the demonstration, but had to stage the drama and pretends to support Najib. The royal decree from the Palace provides the best excuse for Zahid, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, to cancel the solidarity gathering.

 

But the damage has been done. Opposition PAS Islamist party, in its effort to instigate Najib faction and to divide Anwar-led unity government, has announced its participation in the rally. When UMNO announced its cancellation, PAS leaders mocked and ridiculed UMNO for being a coward and terrified of Democratic Action Party (DAP), who has criticised UMNO-PAS joint-rally.

 

Now, UMNO is struggling to persuade PAS to also cancel their solidarity rally for prisoner Najib. The miscalculation of throwing support blindly behind Najib has backfired on UMNO. If the party proceeds with the rally, it will create suspicion and distrust that UMNO and PAS are reviving their Muafakat Nasional alliance to overthrow PM Anwar through backdoor similar to “Sheraton Move” in 2020.

If UMNO cancels the rally, it will be accused as weak and terrified of Chinese DAP. Either way, PAS scores some political brownie points among Malay voters, although the Islamist party knew the unity government will not automatically collapse even if UMNO withdraws support for Anwar-led Pakatan Harapan coalition. And this is exactly why UMNO blinks after the King’s warning.

 

Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Openg, whose GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) coalition was part of the Unity Government, has rubbished the possibility of another “Sheraton Move” political coup – effectively throwing support behind Anwar. Hence, even if UMNO were to join forces with PAS and Bersatu again, they still can’t form a Malay-Muslim government.

 

That’s because PAS’ 43 parliamentary seats along with Bersatu’s 25 (after losing 6 MPs, who switched sides and pledged support for 10th Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) don’t have the numbers even if Barisan Nasional’s entire 30 MPs jump ship. Together, they have only 98 MPs, short of 14 to form a simple majority government in the 222-seat Parliament.

Arguably, if the King really wants to free Najib, all he needs to do is to close both eyes and let Anwar bulldozes the dubious royal addendum. Sultan Ibrahim can always claim innocence and non-interference over a royal decree issued by the previous King. Likewise, if Zahid really wants Najib to walk free, all he needs to do is to call Abang Johari to jump ship together.   

 

 Other Articles That May Interest You …

• Jail From Home Hits Roadblock – King Sultan Ibrahim’s Decree Means Najib’s Royal Addendum Was Illegal & Unconstitutional
• Freeing & Rewarding Corrupt UMNO Crooks – The More Anwar Denies & Explains, The More He’s Seen Lying & Colluding
• Jail From Home – Watch How Crooked Najib Checkmate PM Anwar And Walks Away With Backdated Addendum
• Don’t Make Voters Angry – UMNO & PM Anwar Will Be Punished If Crooked Najib Gets The Royal Pardon
• 10 Years Jail & RM970 Million Fine – To Be Reunited With Najib In Prison, Rosmah Deserves Max 20 Years In Prison
• 3rd Time U.S. Says “No Saudi Donation” – FBI Confirms Najib Stole RM3.2 Billion, Riza RM1 Billion & Jho Low RM6 Billion
• Sex, Bribes & Blackmail – Najib’s Appeal In Jeopardy After Leissner Exposed More Dirty Deals In 1MDB Scandal
• 12 Years’ Jail & RM210 Million Fine For World’s Biggest Crook Najib – A Result Of Insulting The Judge’s Intelligence
• Al-Jazeera Interview – How Mary Ann Jolley Skillfully Skins & Grills Najib Till He Runs Away
• Move Over Marcos – Rosmah’s 12,000 Stolen Jewelleries Worth Over RM1 Billion Dethrone Imelda’s 1,220 Shoes
• Why The Hell Didn’t Crooks Najib And Rosmah Flee Instantly After They Lost The Election?
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January 5th, 2025 by financetwitter

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