Saifuddin Nasution says Home Ministry awaits Pardons Board letter, no Najib house arrest notification yet

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19 — The Home Ministry is still awaiting notification from the Pardons Board regarding former Prime Minister Najib Razak's potential house arrest, according to Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail. The ministry and Prisons Department have not yet received the letter from the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister's Department, which serves as the secretariat to the Pardons Board.

Saifuddin stated that once they receive the notification, they will be able to determine the necessary actions to implement the decision in accordance with existing laws. The letter will also clarify whether the Pardons Board has specified the location for Najib's house arrest or if the decision remains with the Prisons Department.

Currently, Najib is serving his prison sentence, and house arrest would mean he would not be held in prison but serve his sentence at another location, subject to relevant procedures. The ministry is also examining whether the Pardons Board's decision includes any further instructions or delegated authority to the Prisons Department.

Malaysia currently has no specific law governing the mechanism for house arrest, and the Home Minister mentioned that the Cabinet had previously agreed in principle to introduce a House Arrest Act, initially intended to address prison overcrowding, particularly involving remand prisoners.