Najib house arrest rules in final drafting stage

BESUT: The Prisons Department is nearing completion of rules and guidelines for former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's house arrest, announced Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail. The department, tasked with enforcing Pardons Board decisions, received a letter outlining the decision and conditions from the board's secretariat.

Establishing house arrest rules is necessary, as this mechanism has never been used before, according to Saifuddin during a launch event for the National Anti-Drug Agency's Madani Adopted Village and Madani Adopted School programmes. The Pardons Board secretariat letter also mentioned that the Prisons Department could set any suitable conditions.

Najib has yet to fulfill his RM50 million fine and is currently serving his sentence in prison. The Home Ministry, especially the Prisons Department, is responsible for creating clear rules to govern house arrest, Saifuddin stated. He added that this is all he can comment on for now. On September 18, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Ibrahim, granted Najib a conditional pardon for serving the remaining six years of his prison sentence under house arrest in the SRC International case until August 23, 2028, provided he pays the RM50 million fine. The decision was made during the 64th meeting of the Federal Territories Pardons Board.