Singapore media CNA has reported that former Prime minister Najib Razak’s jail sentence for corruption has been reduced from 12 to six years by the Pardons Board following its meeting on Monday (Jan 29), sources including senior government officials told the agency.
CNA reporter Aqil Haziq reported the decision by the board, which is headed by Malaysia’s king, includes a reduction of his RM210 million (US$44.4 million) fine to an unspecified amount, according to three separate sources who spoke on condition of strict confidentiality.
The partial royal pardon for his role in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case comes after serving less than two years of his prison term.
The reduction means Najib is expected to complete his sentence in August 2028. But with parole for good behaviour, he could be out in August 2026 after serving two-thirds of the new jail term.
There has been feverish speculation about the pardon after Dr Zaliha Mustafa, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) confirmed on Tuesday that the board members including herself had met on Monday. She said an official announcement by the Pardons Board will be made.
The meeting was one of Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin’s last official tasks before he stepped down as Malaysia’s king on Jan 31 and handed the role to Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar under the country’s unique rotation system for its nine royal state households.
CNA said it it contacting the Malaysian authorities for comment. Najib’s lead counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said he has yet to be informed of any decision by the Pardons Board.
Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy, giving the king the final word on the pardon of convicted criminals, a similar system that governs neighbouring Thailand.
A high-profile royal clemency was last handed down in mid-May 2018 when the then-king, Sultan Muhamad V of the Kelantan royal household, granted a full pardon to Mr Anwar.
The latter was at the time serving a five-year jail sentence from 2015 for alleged sexual misconduct, a charge many Malaysians believed was part of a conspiracy to keep him out of national politics.
Mr Anwar had earlier filed two separate petitions for a royal pardon, in 2015 and 2017, and both were rejected by the Pardons Board.
Reported by CNA
