AG was right to question Najib’s discharge order, says lawyer

The High Court’s decision to replace its Nov 6 discharge order for Najib Razak shows Attorney-General Dusuki Mokhtar was right to seek scrutiny of the document, says lawyer Hafiz Hassan.

“The AG was right to call for the order of discharge to be scrutinised, as it contains many ‘obvious’ mistakes as pointed out by other lawyers,” he told FMT.

Hafiz said the earlier order was problematic because, in criminal practice, orders were normally implemented through court warrants.

He said the fresh order clarified that paying the RM50 million fine did not release Najib from his prison sentence, but allowed him to serve the remainder of his SRC International term under house arrest.

“Thus, the defence of the previous order is indefensible, with due respect,” Hafiz added.

Najib was jailed in August 2022 after the Federal Court upheld his conviction for abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering involving RM42 million in SRC International funds. He was sentenced to 12 years’ jail and fined RM210 million.

On Jan 29, 2024, the Pardons Board halved his prison sentence to six years and reduced the fine to RM50 million.

In September this year, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim, granted Najib a further conditional pardon allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, subject to payment of the RM50 million fine and other stipulated conditions.

Last Friday, Umno paid the fine and the High Court issued an order of discharge on payment. The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) sought to defer its implementation, citing questions over the document’s wording and its effect on Najib’s remaining prison sentence.

Yesterday, Justice Aslam Zainuddin set aside the discharge order and replaced it with a fresh order after hearing an application by the AGC.

The AGC had identified errors in the court descriptions, conviction date, offences, fine, imprisonment date and prison warrant, and sought clarification that payment discharged Najib from the fine, not his prison sentence.

Hafiz also described accusations that Dusuki had defied the king, and the lodging of police reports against the attorney-general, as “uncalled for and misplaced”.

On Nov 6, Umno secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said attempts to delay implementation of the royal decree amounted to defiance and a violation of constitutionally guaranteed rights.

Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin subsequently called for Dusuki to take immediate leave pending police investigations into reports lodged against him, including by Umno Youth.

Sultan Ibrahim had stressed that the conditional pardon was clear and must be implemented, while the AGC maintained it was seeking clarification of the discharge order’s legal effect, rather than disputing the pardon.

Umno leaders urged to put law before loyalty

Political analyst Ahmad Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri of Global Asia Consulting said Umno leaders defending Najib should be prepared to acknowledge legal defects in an order rather than use political sentiment to determine its correctness.

He said Asyraf and Khairy were entitled to defend the former prime minister, but political loyalty should not override respect for the legal process.

“There is a big difference between questioning a decision and accusing someone of defying the king. The first is a democratic right, while the second requires a much firmer basis than political anger.”

Zaharuddin said Umno leaders who made unfounded accusations against the AG should have the courage to acknowledge and correct their mistakes, rather than remain silent when new facts emerged.

“If a leader makes an unfounded accusation, they must have the courage to admit their mistake and correct it. They should not be quick to make accusations in public, only to remain silent when new facts prove them wrong,” he said.

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