4 days ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
D-Day for A-GC in appeal against Najib's addendum bid
KUALA LUMPUR: The nation's top court will shortly deliver its decision on whether Datuk Seri Najib Razak can go ahead with his bid to confirm the existence of a royal "addendum" allowing him to serve his sentence under house arrest.
The case is set for 9am today before the Federal Court, with the country soon to find out whether the Attorney-General's Chambers (A-GC) has succeeded in its final attempt to stop the former prime minister bid to compel the government to reveal and enforce the alleged order.
Najib claims the addendum, said to have been issued by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong when the Pardons Board agreed to halve his jail term from 12 to six years.
The review bid is currently before the High Court, and will proceed if the A-GC's appeal is rejected. Should the Federal Court rule in favour of the attorney-general, then the High Court case will end.
The case before the apex court is not whether the addendum exists, as Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan said previously the government does not dispute this.
The A-GC, however, is contending the procedure by which it was introduced as new evidence in Najib's judicial review.
On Jan 6, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal voted two-to-one in favour of Najib, allowing him to file additional affidavits in support of his application.
Najib is currently serving a six-year prison sentence for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd.
He was originally sentenced him to 12 years in prison and fined him RM210 million, but the Federal Territories Pardons Board reduced to six years and lowered the fine to RM50 million.
Subsequently, Najib filed an application claiming the existence of an addendum order, allegedly signed by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, which would allow him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.
