PUTRAJAYA, Jan 6 — Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail clarified today that the Prisons Department has not received any directive from the Pardons Board regarding placing Datuk Seri Najib Razak under house arrest.

He said that the only decision conveyed to the department by the board was to reduce Najib’s imprisonment period.

“The Home Affairs Ministry, particularly the Malaysian Prisons Department, received a letter from the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department, which serves as the secretariat to the Pardons Board.

“The letter contained two items. First, it included the minutes of the meeting, which served as a record of all discussions and decisions made during the Pardons Board meeting. These minutes were classified as confidential and were provided to the department.

“Second, the letter included an official directive. The directive served as an order to implement the decisions of the Pardons Board. Details from the meeting room itself could not be disclosed as they are classified as highly confidential.

“However, the directive is critical because it represents the decisions made by the Pardons Board and was signed by its chairman,” he said in a special press conference held at his Ministry’s building here.

Saifuddin said the letter, dated February 2, 2024, included minutes from the Pardons Board meeting held on January 29.

“It provided the Prisons Department with instructions to execute the decision, which also included a summary of the legal proceedings Najib had undergone, from the High Court to the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court,” he said.

Saifuddin said the directive in the letter clearly specified the reduction of Najib’s imprisonment term and the reduction of his fine.

“The Prisons Department confirmed that the letter contained no mention of house arrest. As the agency responsible for implementing the order signed by the chairman of the Pardons Board, the department must act in accordance with this directive.

“The home ministry emphasised this to dispel any misunderstandings or perceptions that the ministry or the Prisons Department was involved in anything outside of executing the official decision,” he said.

Earlier, the Court of Appeal today allowed Najib’s appeal against the dismissal of his bid to compel the Malaysian government to produce a purported “supplementary order” from the previous Yang di-Pertuan Agong that would see him serve the remainder of his jail sentence under “house arrest”.

The majority ruling also allowed Najib to adduce additional evidence to support his claim of the existence of such an addendum.

Today’s ruling means that Najib is allowed to have the merits of his judicial review of a purported addendum issued by the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah — which permits him to serve the remainder of his six-year prison sentence under house arrest — heard by the High Court.

In court today, Najib’s lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah alleged that the home ministry had failed to implement a decision related to house arrest.

“However, based on the official documents received by the ministry, there was no directive regarding house arrest. What we received were only instructions to reduce the imprisonment term and the fine.

“The Pardons Board meeting minutes are classified as highly confidential. However, I can confirm that they do not include anything about house arrest. The Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC), which was also present at the Pardons Board meeting, has confirmed the same in court,” said Saifuddin.

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