The king also said that the power to grant pardons is a royal prerogative under Article 42 of Malaysia’s Federal Constitution.
“The exercise of this power must be respected in accordance with the position of the Constitutional Monarchy and the principle of the rule of law,” Sultan Ibrahim said.
“Given that all the conditions stipulated in the conditional pardon order have been fulfilled, any argument disputing the order would amount to defying the command of His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.”
The statement did not explicitly direct the AGC to withdraw its position or reverse the proposed temporary suspension of Najib’s house arrest.
AGC CITES LEGAL UNCERTAINTY
The king’s remarks follow a dispute between Najib’s lawyers and the AGC on Friday over the implementation of Najib’s conditional pardon, which would allow him to serve the remainder of his sentence in the SRC International corruption case under house arrest.
The AGC called for a temporary suspension of the house arrest arrangement, arguing that further legal clarification was needed before it could be implemented.
The AGC said there were two possible interpretations of the pardon following Najib’s payment of a RM50 million (US$12.3 million) fine.
The AGC said further clarification was needed on whether Najib’s payment of the fine meant he must continue serving his sentence under house arrest until Aug 23, 2028, or whether the sentence should be considered completed.
The distinction is significant because of Najib’s separate conviction in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) case, for which he was sentenced to 15 years in prison, the AGC said.
