ON Jan 6, PAS and UMNO members are expected to “invade” the ground of the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya when the Court of Appeal is in session.
The court will be hearing an application in connection with a royal addendum that purportedly allowed disgraced former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak to serve the remaining years of his jail sentence under house arrest.
Nobody has seen the royal order except for some reportedly stray sightings of this decree. But Najib is convinced there is such an additional document linked to his royal pardon.
He is seeking the court’s leave to cite this order as proof that there was such a directive. If he wins in his appeal, then he wants to be transferred post-haste from the jailhouse to his cosy house.
While all eyes are on the court, the cameras will also be zooming in on Najib’s supporters milling outside.
PAS and UMNO are joining forces to rally around Najib in a show of solidarity for this disgraced leader who came crashing down from his high throne after he was convicted of misappropriating RM42 mil of SRC International funds.
What is the purpose of goading PAS and UMNO members to troop to the court ground? There could only be one main reason: to apply pressure on the court to let Najib walk free to his home.
If one or two million members from PAS and UMNO camps were to turn up, their massive presence could be interpreted as a show of strength. They are sending a message that Najib is still a political force to be reckoned with – don’t mess around with Bossku, your honour.
PAS-UMNO unification?
But it is misleading to portray Najib’s story as one long, unending political struggle. He is not a political prisoner fighting against wrongful imprisonment over political causes. His case is purely criminal which can never be whitewashed.
One suspect that Najib is feeling utterly miserable in his dingy cell and he is struggling to get out to breathe the air of freedom and enjoy all the creature comforts he once had at home.
His struggle has become UMNO’s struggle and an opportunity for PAS to team up with its one-time foe and rebuild their frayed ties.
If Najib wins his case for house arrest – and against all odds – returns to lead UMNO after completing his sentence (that is, if he also walks free from the on-going 1MDB trial), the two major parties would most likely form a partnership to face the next general election.
But for now, the court calls the shot. Only the court can decide the fate of Najib. UMNO and PAS must come to their senses that they cannot – if such is their intention – to influence, bully, intimidate or arm-twist the judges by urging their members to march to the Palace of Justice in a blatant show of political power.
The court must be allowed to operate in an environment completely free from outside interference.
UMNO still cannot accept the incontrovertible fact that Najib is a convicted felon whose political legacy – if there is any – has been tarnished beyond salvation. Carrying him back on its shoulder to the public arena will not put UMNO back on the pedestal.
The army of UMNO and PAS supporters who will descend on the ground of the court will not change the large writing on the wall: Najib is a lost cause.
Come Jan 6, in the showdown between the Palace of Justice and UMNO and PAS “fighters”, the court will win. The rule of law will always prevail over mob rule. – Dec 31, 2-04
Phlip Rodrigues is a retired journalist.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Main image credit: Putrajaya Corporation; Berita Harian
