Carry out house arrest, settle questions in court, say Najib’s lawyers

Najib Razak's lawyers have declared that the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) lacks the authority to postpone the house arrest for the former Umno president. The legal firm, Shafee & Co, stated that the commissioner-general of prisons must facilitate Najib's release into house arrest without delay, asserting that the AGC cannot keep him in Kajang prison while awaiting their decision.

The legal team emphasized that Najib's home has been declared a prison under the authority of the commissioner-general of prisons, moving him from one gazetted prison to another as per the conditional royal pardon. The statement emphasized that all conditions of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's house arrest order have been fulfilled, and there is no valid reason for Najib to remain in Kajang prison any longer.

The AGC had previously called for a deferral of Najib's house arrest, citing complex legal questions regarding the implementation of the pardon and the court order. However, Najib's lawyers argued that the AGC's interpretation was incorrect and that the attorney-general has no power to stay the royal prerogative of pardon while considering its position. They emphasized that the AGC's reference to the 1MDB case does not change anything and has no bearing on the AGC's duty to enforce the pardon in the SRC case.

The legal firm questioned why the attorney-general did not raise the legal concerns during the pardons board meeting that advised the king on the pardon. They noted that if the AGC had any concerns about the terms of the pardon, they should have raised them then instead of waiting until after the fine had been paid. Umno had already paid the RM50 million fine mandated by the royal pardon, and the High Court subsequently issued an Order of Discharge.