Editor’s note: In conjunction with Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the Prisons Department will implement the Ihsan Madani Prisoners’ Release on Licence (OBB) programme (awaited return) involving more than 1,000 prisoners in the months of Ramadan and Syawal.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said this would give Muslim prisoners an opportunity to celebrate Aidilfitri with their beloved families and allow non-Muslim inmates to strengthen family ties.
The joke of the town is whether incarcerated ex-premier Datuk Seri Najin Razak ‘could be’ one of the thousand-odd prisoners to be freed.
Former Pekan UMNO information chief Datuk Mohamad Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz who came to prominence as a much-followed blogger under the pseudonym “Sakmongkol AK47” sheds some light into such prospect with the looming royal pardon in his latest blog.
An UMNO leader from Batu Pahat prayed in front of the holy Kaabah. He prayed for the release of incarcerated former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak. He can pray for whatever he wants. But don’t be angry if there are people who pray and entreat God to punish the thieving felon.
Interestingly enough, UMNO doesn’t have complete faith in doa (prayers); that’s why it asks its members to sign a petition asking clemency from the king. But there’s a glitch. The letter or warkah asking for clemency has not been sent yet by Najib’s lawyer, prison lawyer or a lawyer representing Najib’s family.
That’s a bloody faux pas, gaucherie or peccadillo on the part of UMNO. Because of the indiscretion, UMNO enters the upcoming state elections in the six states as the weak link.
The faux pas is a poor reflection of UMNO. It does not respect the law in that:
- It will bend the law until it suits them.
- It will use political pressure to subvert the law
- Opens up UMNO to all form of criticisms imaginable.
So, it’s not a good strategy for Pakatan Harapan (PH) to sacrifice seats in all the six states. In fact, PH needs to limit UMNO. But as usual, UMNO will act as if the tea spoon is bigger than the dinner spoon.
Meanwhile, convict Najib is behaving like a privileged prisoner. Special Bumiputera rights, perhaps? He goes to court not handcuffed and escorted by a fleet of cars and a phalanx of state paid escorts.
He is even seen carrying a hand phone. He wears Zegna or Gucci suits instead of prison garb. Hey, sob sob other daddies are also spending Raya with fellow inmates.
It is a demonic and fiendish evil move by UMNO to circumvent the law.
So, I must say sorry beforehand as I shan’t leave this subject of clemency and pardon to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) alone. The issue is of paramount importance and its significance is so wide ranging that I shall be remiss in my duty as a loyal subject if I do not give my opinion on it.
Whether my opinion is listened to by His Majesty the YDPA is immaterial. I am one of the many conscientious objectors who wants Najib to pay for his crime.
Clemency and pardon ought not to be given cavalierly. The issue must be studied meticulously all round. It’s not like playing polo at padang (field) polo or plucking pauh (wild mango) in Permatang Pauh or eating temosa raja (royal pie).
Let me give you the irrational reasons first. Why Najib alone? Why not pardon, too, the rapists, murderers and the incestuous convicts?
Najib ‘raped’ and ‘murdered’ this country by his corruption. He is the same class as the other degenerates.
Will the pardon – if given – also cover possible future convictions? There is a strong possibility that Najib may also be convicted for 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Bhd) offences. Let’s not kid ourselves. The tributaries are polluted, hence it’s impossible for the main river to be pristine.
As the other supporting actors in the 1MDB scandal have all been convicted, it’s impossible to believe Najib will be exonerated. Hence, to give the felon-in-chief a pardon is like giving him a carte blanche to murder.
We must not allow UMNO, Zahid and Najib to make a mockery over the law. If we believe that no one is above the law, it must also mean to refrain from doing anything that prejudices the law.
Asking for a royal pardon is therefore inimical to the concept that no one is above the law. On the other hand, it sends the message of ‘break the law, ask for pardon later’. – April 19, 2023
In early 2012, Datuk Mohamad Ariff Sabri Abdul Aziz who was the former Pahang state assemblyman for Pulau Manis (2004 to 2008) – alongside another prominent blogger Aspan Alias – left UMNO to join DAP, citing UMNO’s failure to eradicate corruption and increase the livelihood of Malays in general.
DAP fielded him for the parliamentary seat of Raub in the 13th General Election (GE13) which he won but was only able to serve for one term.
He suffered a stroke in May 2017, hence did not seek a second term re-election for his Raub parliamentary seat in the 2018 general election. But at 66 today, he still lives up to his billing as a controversial yet insightful blogger with his ‘gun-blazing’ pseudonym Sakmongkol AK47.
