Umno-Baru supreme council member, Puad Zarkashi, might think that he is a defender of those who were wronged, claiming that the convicted felon, Najib Abdul Razak, was denied justice, with no firm decision made for him to serve the rest of his sentence at home.

When asked to comment about the attorney-general’s (AG) move to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision about Najib’s royal addendum, Puad expressed huge disappointment with the AG.

He and other senior Umno-Baru members probably thought that Najib was denied a fair trial and that he should be placed under house arrest.

However much these Umno-Baru politicians claim “to support justice”, they forget that it is the rakyat who are the victims. Najib is not the victim.

Najib stole billions of ringgits from the taxpayer, but claimed the money was a donation from an Arab prince.

He purchased prime real estate in New York, London and California, luxury goods, expensive holidays, jewels, and works of art.

The illicit funds supported Najib’s luxurious lifestyle, whilst Malaysian citizens were saddled with a trillion-ringgit national debt.

Puad’s lack of principles is astounding. In the SRC International scandal, Najib diverted RM42 million of taxpayers’ money into his personal accounts.

Sadly, the story of 1MDB, can also be used to describe how those in the then Umno-Baru cabinet were aware of what was happening but closed both eyes to Najib’s crime.

Those who tried to highlight and expose the corruption scandal were silenced, threatened, or paid with their lives, such as the founder of Ambank, Hussein Najadi.

Puad and his peers live in denial.

Najib is not just a common thief, but is also a liar, who manages to convince his gullible supporters, that he is innocent of all the charges.

They may believe Najib’s spin that he was tricked by his trusted friend, the Penangite Jho Low, or that he was the hapless victim of rogue bankers; but did Puad ever consider that during Najib’s administration, those who had the ability to act failed to do so, despite overwhelming evidence from overseas, supplied by governments and financial institutions.

Najib was economical with the truth about 1MDB and now he is still trying his best to avoid serving his term in full.

The rakyat are disappointed with the cop-out by the Pardon’s board, under the advice of the Madani administration, to halve his jail-term and reduce his fine.

What sort of justice is this?

A desperate father who stole cans of sardine from the grocery shop to feed his starving children is jailed for a year.

A few weeks ago, a mother with a hungry baby, and an ailing father to care for, was jailed for three months for stealing food from a supermarket.

Where is Puad’s compassion, sense of proportionality, and understanding of justice?

However, the disgraced Najib was found guilty of all seven charges, for abuse of power, money laundering and Criminal Breach of Trust (CBT).

In his ruling, High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali said that the SRC case involved the worst kind of abuse of position by the highest-ranking authority in government. He sentenced Najib to 12 years in prison and fined him RM210 million.

Appealing against his sentence meant that Najib has been tried in three courts—the High Court, the Appeals Court, and the Federal Court, and was tried by nine judges. 

The apology which he offered, years after his sentencing, was made almost as an afterthought and sounded most insincere.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigations and interviews with former prime ministers who are allegedly involved in corrupt activities during their tenure are still ongoing.

How long before the rakyat learns about the outcome of these probes?

At the same time, several allegedly corrupt ministers from Najib’s era who have yet to face trail, or had their corruption trials quashed or they were given a DNAA.

Puad claimed that Najib faced many difficulties in the pursuit of justice. He and his peers were hurt by the AG’s decision and the ensuing delay, until July for the matter to be heard.

Actually, the rakyat could not care less about Puad’s feelings and if it were left to them, Najib’s original fine and jail term should be increased, and the key to his cell door, thrown away.

Najib tried many tactics to delay his trial, including falling ill several times, a dog biting his lawyer’s hand and the lawyer’s son’s wedding.

There was also an attempt to challenge the impartiality of the Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, to remove her from the final appeal’

Puad should learn to distinguish between right from wrong, advise Najib to drop his demand for a house arrest, and return the stolen money.

By expressing his regret about Najib’s treatment, Puad sends out the wrong message to the rakyat. Disgraced politicians set a bad example for our young.

Sources:

1. Malaysiakini: Puad: Najib faces uphill battle in courts over house arrest bid
2. Malaysiakini: Najib guilty: All 7 charges proven beyond reasonable doubt
3. Malaysiakini: Court unanimously throws out Najib’s appeal, allows stay of execution

(Mariam Mokhtar is a Freelance Writer.)