Shafee claims 16th Agong considered granting Najib a full pardon

KUALA LUMPUR - Datuk Seri Najib Razak's lawyer claims that the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah had previously considered giving the former prime minister a full pardon on Jan 29.

Lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said this during a press conference regarding the pardon issue involving Najib at the Kuala Lumpur Courts Complex, today.

However, Shafee said Al-Sultan Abdullah had distributed the voting papers to four non-permanent members of the Pardons Board on Jan 21 before making any decision.

"I was told and I believe that Al-Sultan Abdullah, at that time, was thinking about granting (Najib) a full pardon. This is according to the most reliable source.

"There was indeed a decision, but I do not know what the outcome was, but the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong later made an alternative decision (of reducing Najib's sentence)," he said.

He said there were facts suggesting that the voting papers used were irregular and this has never happened before.

Speculations about Najib's early release from prison were finally answered when the Pardons Board confirmed that he would be released on Aug 23, 2028.

This date was six years earlier than his original jail time and his fine was also reduced from RM210 million to RM50 million.

However, Najib would have to serve another one year in jail if he failed to pay the fine and the date of his release would be on Aug 23, 2029.

According to a statement issued by the board's secretariat, the decision was reached during the board's 61st meeting on Jan 29.

Najib, 71, began serving his 12-year jail term at the Kajang Prison on Aug 23, 2022 after the Federal Court upheld his conviction and sentence for misappropriating RM42 million of funds belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd.