Editor’s Note: This is a case of calling a spade just as it is – a spade. Such is the conclusion derived by political critic and veteran journalist Kee Thuan Chye of the much-talked royal addendum issue.
One wonders if his faith in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition which spearheads the Madani government is challenged with his personal findings.
I HAVE looked closely at this video again and it appears to me that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is the main actor in the move to pardon disgraced former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
He admitted it in this video that in 2023 when he was the Federal Territory Minister and therefore a member of the Pardons Board, he was the one who presented Najib’s pardon appeal to the then Agong (Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah).
The Agong postponed his decision then and again at a subsequent meeting.
For the third meeting when the Agong halved Najib’s sentence, Anwar was not there. He had appointed Dr Zaliha Mustafa to take over from him as the FT Minister. Was it so that he would not be publicly seen to have influenced the decision?
Now, as we see in the video, he appears to be trying to deflect responsibility for what he did.
This is by mentioning Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and even PAS while asking why he should be blamed for the addendum issue when he was not the one who put Najib behind bars!
We should not be fooled by his attempt to twist things. He has said that he is the one who started it all by bringing Najib’s application to the Pardons Board – and at a time when Najib hadn’t even served the requisite three years to qualify for consideration.
Did he do this for UMNO? We got rid of UMNO for this? We toppled Najib so that Anwar can set him free?
Anwar must not be allowed to get away with being the prime mover of the pardon bid. If there’s nothing we can do for now, think of the next GE (general election). – Jan 14, 2025
Kee Thuan Chye is also the author of Ask for No Bullshit, Get Some More! (sequel to No More Bullshit, Please, We’re All Malaysians).
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Main image credit: Anwar Ibrahim/Facebook
