In a historic unanimous ruling, Malaysia’s Federal Court on Tuesday (August 23) upheld former prime minister Najib Razak’s guilty conviction and a 12-year jail sentence on charges related to a multi-billion dollar corruption scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), sealing the 69-year-old’s fate as Kajang Prison’s newest inmate.
Najib, who simultaneously served as prime minister and finance minister from 2009-18, was found guilty in July 2020 of criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering for illegally receiving US$10 million from SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB. An appellate court last year upheld the guilty verdict along with a $46.7 million fine, prompting him to appeal again to the nation’s highest court.
“This is a very historic moment for Malaysia,” said James Chin, professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania. “It is the first time in Malaysian history that a former prime minister has been jailed for corruption. There was a lot of suspicion that the judiciary would be influenced by the political class in this case, but the result is an affirmation of the leadership of the judiciary.”
Rejecting his request for a stay of sentence, a five-person bench led by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat dismissed the ex-premier’s final appeal after Najib’s legal team, which was replaced just three weeks before his appeal began on August 15, declined to present their case in court, citing insufficient time to prepare their arguments due to the purported complexity of the case.
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Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.
