SHAH ALAM - "If the unity government fails to ensure that former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Razak gets proper justice in his court case conviction, Umno's relationship with the government is going to face difficulties and risk failure".
Umno supreme council member Isham Jalil said this in demanding for Najib's release from prison.
Isham said the demand for Najib to be released was the main focus of the majority of the party's grassroots now and this was no longer a secret among the Umno leadership and the unity government.
With the difficulties of the Umno leadership to convince party members to support DAP in the unity government, Isham said he was worried that the Umno grassroots will continue to protest against the government if no seriousness was shown in dealing with Najib's case.
"In Umno, there are still many grassroots members who are loyal supporters of Najib. Until now, in any form of party programme, the most asked question to the supreme council members is what actions the government and Umno have taken in defending the fate of Bossku'.
"This is because it is not only Najib's staunch supporters who are demanding justice for him, but also many Malaysians who are neutral such as some former judges and lawyers voicing the opinion that my boss did not receive a fair trial.
"Thus, if the government or Umno did not show any seriousness in defending Najib's fate, then this matter will further complicate the relationship between Umno and the unity government and will likely face failure," he told Sinar Premium, yesterday.
He said this in response to the current situation about the demands for justice and Najib's release, which was now being pursued by the former Umno president's primary support group through mass and party actions.
More than 2,000 Umno members rallied outside the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 21 to call for Najib to be granted a royal pardon.
A campaign has also been started to gather signatures from students in favour of the petition calling for Najib's release.
The former prime minister was found guilty for embezzling funds from SRC International Sdn Bhd and was currently serving a 12-year prison term.
Apparently, Umno tried to set the party's former president free, even asking for a royal pardon.
However, Isham claimed that he received information that royal pardon application process to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to release Najib, was said to have not happened yet.
"If there is (an application), inform the public of the latest status. There should be no attempt to hide behind the Istana Negara by saying that the power to approve the application is solely based on the discretion of His Majesty.
"If the government does not inform anything, the people will see that the government is not serious about defending Najib's fate," he said.