FORMER attorney-general Tan Sri Tommy Thomas has raised several points of contention over since-imprisoned Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s royal pardon bid.
In an interview with Malaysiakini, Thomas said there are currently an estimated 50,000 prisoners in jails in Malaysia, all of whom are entitled to apply for a pardon under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.
“There are practical problems: because if 50,000 were to apply, the Pardons Board would collapse; they cannot sustain it,” he reportedly said. “So, there is a process built over decades since Merdeka.”
He also noted that the Federal Territories Pardons Board – from whom Najib is seeking a pardon as he was charged for his SRC International corruption case in Kuala Lumpur – traditionally meets three or four times a year and considers about 10 applications each time.
“So, let’s say in a typical year, they have 50 applications by 50 convicts: the first problem is how do you become one of the 50?
“You can’t jump queue. There is a waiting time. Najib has to wait his turn – otherwise, you are unfair to other prisoners who have been waiting for years before submitting their applications.”
Thomas added that this is why it is a convention for prisoners to serve at least one-third of their jail sentences first before applying from the Pardons Board.
“Whole idea is to show you’ve reformed”
He also noted that the “whole idea” of pardons is that a convict shows evidence that they have reformed while in prison and will not carry out criminal behaviour anymore.
That, he said, is proved by spending time in prison and having references from the parole officers, prison officers, hospital staff and independent sources – and not just a “self-serving” statement from the convict.
“He has not even been in jail for one week,” he added. “Reform is after you served jail time.
“In each case, you must show reform and contrition. (The convict) often show that they performed extra work, that they helped in the kitchen of the prison, they did charity, they worked in the garden, they helped other fellow prisoners, they took steps to reform and it was attested by others.
“By definition, that means a substantial period of time in prison.”
He added that convicts who apply for pardons must not have other criminal cases; Najib still has four other pending criminal cases in court that are in the trial stage.
“In all these cases, the prosecution has a very strong case. I expect the defence to be called. I expect Najib to be convicted.
“So, you cannot be entertaining pardon for offence number 1 when you have the other four pending,” he said, adding that it is not “legally possible” for Najib to put forward his application now.
“Final appeal rejected”
Najib is currently serving time in prison after the Federal Court last month rejected his final appeal in his SRC International RM42 mil corruption case and upheld his seven charges of power abuse, criminal breach of trust and money laundering, RM210 mil fine and 12-year jail sentence.
The Pekan MP is believed to have applied for a royal pardon from Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah as the King has the power to grant pardons for offences committed in the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya.
Meanwhile, commenting on calls to review the Federal Court decision, Thomas said the threshold for the apex court to review its own decision was “incredibly, incredibly high”.
He also said Najib’s legal team cannot ask for a review of the decision after “everything that happened was self-inflicted and self-induced by the lawyers whose actions and omissions bind Najib. Indeed, suicidal or kamikaze conduct.”
“In my opinion, a review is absolutely doomed to fail,” he added. – Sept 8, 2022
