The High Court in Kuala Lumpur was informed that a supposed addendum order—allegedly allowing former prime minister Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest—was never presented, discussed, or approved during the 61st Pardons Board meeting held in January last year.
Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, appearing for the government and several respondents, stated that the document cited by Najib’s son in an affidavit was absent from official deliberations and had no standing in the board’s proceedings. He stressed that decisions involving pardon applications in the Federal Territories must be considered and finalised through a meeting chaired by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in line with Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.
He explained that, after each meeting, the Pardons Board Secretariat drafts the formal order for approval from the monarch and the relevant minister. In this case, only one decision emerged from the January 29, 2024 meeting: a 50% reduction to Najib’s SRC International sentence and fine.
Shamsul told the court that nothing resembling an instruction for house arrest was tabled, considered, or approved. He argued that the alleged addendum was therefore outside the required constitutional process and could not be treated as a legally valid order. Without proper deliberation, he said, the Pardons Board could not provide the constitutional advice mandated under Article 42(9).
He added that any decision validly formed through the official meeting process—including the 50% reduction—remains non-justiciable by the courts, but the same protection could not apply to a document that did not pass through the required procedure.
Najib’s legal team took the opposite position. Lead counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah insisted that the addendum exists, remains operative, and should have been enforced more than a year ago. He maintained that Najib ought to be under house arrest rather than serving time in Kajang Prison.
The judge set January 5 for the ruling on Najib’s judicial review, which seeks a mandamus compelling authorities to confirm the document’s existence and, if proven genuine, to activate its contents.
Najib continues to serve his sentence after being convicted for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International. His sentence was initially set at 12 years with a RM210 million fine before the reduction granted through the royal pardon process. The former premier now argues that a further condition—allegedly issued on the same date—entitles him to complete his term at home rather than behind bars.
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