THE issue of a royal pardon from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for ex-prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has become a major bone of contention between various factions and parties which, if not handled adroitly, could lead to the imminent collapse of the hard-won unity government.
Najib’s supporters in and out of government are clamouring for his release. UMNO loyalists feel that Najib can stabilise and catalyse the party, and gear it for the state polls in a few months’ time.
UMNO die-hards feel that the party has to regain its former status and cannot continue to be a mere prop for the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-dominated government.
This alliance could, if nothing disastrous happens in the next few days or weeks, last out for the next five years.
After that UMNO and the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition could be on their own. For that to happen UMNO needs competent and capable leaders post-Najib and Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, and some of the leaders who left the party need to be called back to strengthen it.
One needs to sympathise with the unity government for having to face a baptism of fire so early in their rule.
The unity government is now in a catch-22 situation concerning the royal pardon for Najib. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim needs to be pragmatic on this issue and support the pardon or else the unity government will self-destruct or be short-lived.
Zahid is also in a dilemma as his control of UMNO, which is the lynchpin of the unity government, will be in jeopardy.
The anti-party hopping law will be ineffective if all UMNO parliamentarians rebel and want to vacate their seats and force by-elections.
There is nothing in the law that can prevent this from happening. There is not a ghost of a chance that PH can win any of these vacated Malay-centric constituencies.
The Sabah and Sarawak coalitions too may join them as the former prime minister was the first one to provide generous allocations for the East Malaysian states, unlike those before him who were more interested in extracting their natural resources only.
Apart from these, Najib also has much support from the majority of Malays especially the poorer ones and also a substantial section of Indians who are grateful for his various gestures to uplift the Indians.
PAS, too, supports Najib and, if not for the intransigence of Zahid, Muafakat Nasional could have become a reality and the GE15 results could have been different.
As such Anwar needs to look at the royal pardon issue proactively and favourably in order to save the unity government.
The reformist and good governance agenda are more important, and must continue. The nation needs new legislations to wipe out corruption, embezzlement and abuse of power.
Old ineffective laws need to amended or thrown out. The Official Secrets Act (OSA) has to be reviewed radically as it is one of the main loopholes enabling much graft in the government sector as it is the first refuge of errant civil servants.
New laws such as the introduction of local government elections, which could help eliminate graft and abuse of power in the local authorities, need to be passed.
If PH can join forces with UMNO which they had been condemning non-stop as kleptocratic and racist until the eve of the general election, why can’t they agree to Najib receiving a royal pardon?
Najib’s other cases can wait and it is not a foregone conclusion that he will lose all the cases and will seek royal pardons repeatedly.
Take note that Zahid was freed from 47 of the foreign visa system case last September.
The dissenting judgement of one of judges of the Federal Court review panel has been used to build up the case for a royal pardon for Najib.
A lot of UMNO members view the dissenting judgement as revealing that Najib was denied a fair trial especially at the final stages of his appeal mainly concerning the conflict of interest and refusal for adjournment issues.
Anwar needs to use his wisdom and experience to overcome this dilemma. There will be other issues concerning various politicians in the near future as a number of top politicians have been booked for serious graft and abuse of power cases, and he will have to use his foresight to deal with them one by one.
It is no more a rosy world out there in politics and Anwar will have to choose the lesser of the two evils for his political survival and national well-being. – April 19, 2023
V. Thomas
Sungai Buloh, Selangor
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
