On the day the United States remembered the terrorist attacks 25 years ago, Malaysia was almost hit by a huge explosion on September 11 – a sudden release of Najib Razak from jail. Currently in Kajang Prison, Najib was scheduled to complete his term only on Aug 23, 2028 after securing a partial royal pardon in January 2024 that halved his jail term and reduced his fine to RM50 million.
Much to the people’s relief, King Sultan Ibrahim of Johor postponed a decision on a new clemency bid by former premier Najib Razak over his conviction in a case linked to the infamous 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Berhad) financial scandal. “His Majesty (Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar) consented for the application for a pardon by (Najib) to be deferred to a future meeting of the Pardons Board,” – a statement said.
The King, who chaired a Pardons Board meeting on Friday (Sept 11), pardoned 65 inmates, but crooked Najib was not one of them. Former Prime Minister Najib was initially sentenced to 12 years’ jail and fined RM210 million in July 2020 on three counts of criminal breach of trust, three counts of money laundering and one count of abuse of power.
Najib, 73, began serving his jail term in August 2022 after he exhausted all the appeals up to the Federal Court in his charges of transferring RM42 million from SRC International, a former subsidiary of state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), into his personal bank accounts in 2014 and 2015. He began serving his jail term in August 2022.
Even after the partial royal pardon, Najib had insisted that the then-King, Sultan Abdullah of Pahang, had issued an addendum order for him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest. However, the High Court last year ruled that the addendum order was not enforceable because it had not been deliberated in the January 2024 Pardons Board meeting.
From the beginning, the royal pardon has been both controversial and suspicious. The meeting was held just one day before Sultan Abdullah ended his reign as Malaysia’s monarch. At that time, Najib had been a prisoner for about one year and five months (he was jailed on August 23, 2022) only, therefore, he was not qualified to apply for a pardon – regardless of full or partial.
Former Attorney-General Tommy Thomas said that one-third of a prison sentence must be served before any pardon can be considered, which means Najib must spend at least four years of his 12-year prison term first. When it was announced that the ex-premier had indeed been given a pardon – 50% discount of his prison time and 75% of his RM210 million fines – all hell broke loose.
While the king plays a largely ceremonial role in Malaysia, and has the authority to grant pardons, he must exercise the power of royal pardon after receiving and considering the advice of the Pardons Board under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution. An amendment to the Federal Constitution in 1994 removed the “absolute discretion” of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King) to grant pardons.
Suspicions were raised as disgraced Najib shares a deep-seated, generation-spanning special relationship with the Pahang Royal Family. He holds the “Orang Kaya Indera Shahbandar” title, which he inherited from his late father. The title is one of the four highest ranking nobles below the monarch – hence also known as the “Orang Besar Berempat”, loosely translates as “the four chiefs” of Pahang.
Voices of frustration, even anger, could be heard among average Joes and Janes that Malay Elites were scratching each other’s back in the stunning partial royal pardon for Najib, whose father was the country’s second prime minister. Till today, the government’s total liabilities linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) stand at a cumulative RM51.4 billion as of mid-2026, according to the Ministry of Finance.
The U.S.-DOJ investigation results say that over US$4.5 billion was misappropriated from the 1MDB fund, with some of the money used to finance Hollywood films, and buy hotels, private jet, luxury Equanimity superyacht, Picasso paintings, jewellery and real estate. More than US$700 million (hence the infamous RM2.6 billion) from the fund landed in Najib’s bank account.
But there was something more interesting – and suspicious – over Najib’s second royal pardon request. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was reportedly “caught off guard” – even upset – just 24 hours before the King’s meeting on Friday to decide the fate of Najib Razak. Apparently, Mr Anwar had not been notified in advance that the Pardons Board would meet.
“The Prime Minister was very upset as he was not informed that the board is scheduled to meet on Sept 11 and will be chaired by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar. He only got to know on Monday when it was raised at a PH (Pakatan Harapan) leadership meeting,” – said the source, referring to Federal Territories Minister Hannah Yeoh briefing on the matter.
Anwar’s so-called surprise came as UMNO president Zahid Hamidi, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, said he hoped for the best outcome for his former boss Najib Razak ahead of Friday’s Pardons Board meeting. Exactly how could Zahid know about Najib’s second royal pardon application, but not Anwar, supposedly the most powerful man in the country?
Either the Prime Minister, drunk with power, was clueless and incompetent, or the serial liar had lied again as usual. After all, PM Anwar Ibrahim was the same man who argued on Feb 2024 that the Pardons Board’s decision to reduce Najib Razak’s jail sentence and fine was due to the “mercy and compassion” of the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah of Pahang.
So, why Anwar, who shamelessly defended Najib’s first royal pardon in 2024 by condemning critics disagreed with his administration’s decision – so much so he started talking like philosopher Socrates about life journey, life in prison, deeds, and whatnot – is now so terribly upset over Najib’s second royal pardon? What has happened to Anwar’s so-called “mercy and compassion”?
Assuming the Premier was really clueless, which is hard to believe because it would also mean he should quit for sleeping on the job, it creates more questions than answers. Who tried to sabotage him? Did the King, working with the corrupted United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), try to damage and destroy Anwar Ibrahim, despite his obedience and subservience to both the monarch and UMNO?
Or was it actually con artist Anwar who tried to pull another Najib royal pardon together with UMNO, using the same pathetic playbook of blaming the monarch to zip people’s mouth, only to be discovered by the Democratic Action Party (DAP) and threatened to pull out of the Madani government? Perhaps everyone was involved in the Sept 11 grand theatre.
No reason was given when Najib filed an appeal – but suddenly withdrew it in April this year – to reverse the High Court’s decision last year that the royal addendum order was not enforceable. That suggests that a dirty deal could have been made between Anwar and UMNO to quietly grant Najib his wish to serve jail sentences in a luxury mansion.
However, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s multi-coalition unity government went haywire when Zahid led Barisan Nasional to a solo state election in Johor, and subsequently an alliance with opposition Perikatan Nasional instead of Anwar’s coalition in the Melaka state election. UMNO’s betrayal means all bets were off, leading to the postponement, at least “temporarily”, of Najib’s second royal pardon.
Make no mistake – there is no specific provision under Malaysian law for house arrest as an alternative to imprisonment. Sultan Ibrahim knew this, and the king would dirty his hands if he naively bulldozes a second royal pardon for Najib the same way his predecessor Sultan Abdullah did. Even if the monarch was complicit in UMNO’s plot to free Najib, the timing isn’t right yet.
UMNO this week criticised Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) alliance after it issued a rare statement saying individuals convicted of graft or abuse of power should serve full sentences, without directly referring to Najib. PH stressed that any decision involving high-profile cases must take into account public confidence in Malaysia’s commitment to its reform and anti-corruption agenda.
But Hannah Yeoh, a DAP lawmaker, and the Anwar-appointed Attorney General reportedly would oppose further clemency for Najib – a retaliation in anticipation that Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional would go against each other in the next 16th General Election. With Barisan Nasional expected to work with rival Perikatan Nasional, PH is set to return to opposition.
However, no one, including the King, wants to be blamed for triggering a political instability just because of one man – Najib. DAP lawmaker Yeoh, promoted on December 16, 2025 during a cabinet reshuffle as the first Chinese and non-Muslim minister to hold the Federal Territories portfolio since it was created in 1976, would be in spotlight – and a scapegoat – if she agrees lamely to Najib’s pardon.
Likewise, PM Anwar, who is also president of People’s Justice Party (PKR), would see his popularity plunging if he did not pretend to be upset over Najib’s royal pardon. Having led his party to near annihilation in Sabah, Johor, Negeri Sembilan, and soon Melaka state elections, the forked-tongue prime minister cannot afford to be seen as the culprit behind Najib’s undeserved freedom.
It was not a coincidence that the Pardons Board meeting came in the middle of the UMNO general assembly from September 9 to 12. Shedding crocodile tears, Zahid said – “We are saddened by the decision. Nevertheless, we continue to express our deepest respect to His Majesty the King, and we appeal to His Majesty to use all his wisdom to make the best decision.”
Zahid’s response suggests that Najib’s clemency bid would be granted only after the next national polls. It would be inthe interest of Zahid if his former boss remains in jail. Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said last year his client may return to politics if he is pardoned and allowed out of prison. That would threaten Zahid’s ambition to become the next Prime Minister.
To make matters complicated, Najib faces another lengthy jail term in a separate 1MDB-related case. The High Court in December 2025 sentenced him to 15 years in prison and fined him RM11.38 billion on 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering involving RM2.2 billion misappropriated from 1MDB. The jail term was due to begin in 2028 after he finishes his current sentence. He has filed an appeal against the verdict and sentence.
It’s not rocket science that everyone would benefit if jailed Najib remains in prison for now. Anwar could use it to trumpet his half-baked anti-corruption rhetoric, while DAP could justify its relevance after keeping quiet for the past four years, including during the period when the PM facilitated Najib’s partial royal pardon. In the same breath, UMNO could weaponize PH’s brutality to rally Malay voters under the pretext of freeing Najib.
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September 11th, 2026 by financetwitter
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