Kuala lumpur: The High Court was informed today that an alleged addendum order, which purportedly authorizes Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest, was never addressed during the 61st Pardons Board Meeting.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan, representing the government and six other respondents, argued that the contents of the addendum order, as mentioned in an affidavit by Najib’s son, Datuk Mohamad Nizar, were not discussed in the meeting chaired by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong on January 29, 2024.

Shamsul stated that, based on Article 42(1) of the Federal Constitution (FC), along with Article 42(8), any decision by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong regarding a pardon application in the Federal Territory must be determined at a Pardons Board meeting presided over by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. He emphasized that the imposition of house arrest, as reflected in the addendum order, was not deliberated at the 61st Pardons Board Meeting. The minutes of the meeting only recorded a single decision, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s 50 percent decision on Najib’s SRC case.

Shamsul further explained that the addendum order was not issued following the procedural framework as prescribed under Articles 42(1), 42(8), and 42(9) of the FC, rendering it legally unenforceable. Additionally, he noted that any decision from a meeting presided over by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, including his 50 percent decision, is non-justiciable.

According to Shamsul, during the meeting chaired by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, five pardon applications, including Najib’s, were considered. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong proposed a full pardon for Najib, but the majority of the Pardons Board members did not agree. Consequently, a compromise was proposed for a 50 percent reduction of Najib’s prison sentence and fine.

Meanwhile, Najib’s lawyer, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, contended that the addendum order was valid and should be enforced, arguing that his client should be under house arrest instead of remaining in prison.

Justice Alice Loke Yee Ching has set January 5 as the date to deliver the decision. Previously, on August 13, the Federal Court remitted the case to the High Court for a hearing on its merits after dismissing the Attorney General’s application for leave to appeal the Court of Appeal’s decision regarding the addendum.

Najib is seeking a mandamus order to compel the respondents to confirm and disclose the existence of the document. He has named multiple parties, including the Home Minister and the Government of Malaysia, as respondents. Najib, who has been serving his sentence at Kajang Prison since August 23, 2022, following his conviction, also seeks to be transferred to serve his sentence under house arrest if the addendum exists.

His initial 12-year prison sentence and RM210 million fine were reduced by the Pardons Board to six years in prison and a RM50 million fine following his petition for a royal pardon on September 2, 2022.