Gulam questions Hannah Yeoh’s role in Najib pardon deliberations

KUALA LUMPUR: UMNO Batu division chief Datuk Gulam Muszaffar Gulam Mustakim has questioned whether Hannah Yeoh’s views on former prime minister Najib Razak’s pardon application were expressed solely in her capacity as a member of the Federal Territories Pardons Board.

Gulam’s remarks came after Yeoh said she had given her views on Najib’s pardon application “honestly and frankly”, based on her conscience and in the national interest, after studying the written opinion of the Attorney-General.

Yeoh, who is Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Federal Territories, said she had expressed the views in her capacity as the minister responsible for the Federal Territories and a member of the Pardons Board.

Gulam, however, questioned whether her position represented her personal view as a minister or reflected the political position of DAP, claiming that several DAP leaders had previously opposed a pardon for Najib.

He also alleged that some DAP leaders had previously threatened to resign from the Cabinet if Najib were granted a pardon or allowed to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest.

Gulam further claimed that DAP and PH supporters had previously created a narrative during the Johor state election campaign that Najib would be released if Barisan Nasional won, although he did not provide evidence to substantiate the claim.

He said Yeoh’s participation in the Pardons Board should therefore be scrutinised, alleging that she could have been acting as a representative of DAP’s position rather than solely in her ministerial capacity.

Gulam also speculated that Yeoh may have come under pressure from DAP’s leadership, while describing Najib’s pardon as politically significant for the party. These claims were presented by Gulam as his own views and were not supported by evidence cited in his statement.

He said questions surrounding DAP’s position should instead be directed to its secretary-general, Anthony Loke, whom he accused of leaving Yeoh to answer questions on the matter alone.

Gulam said he sympathised with Yeoh, whom he described as being placed in a difficult position, and suggested that her appointment as Federal Territories minister may have had political implications for Najib’s pardon application.

The Pardons Board met on Sept 11, with Yeoh attending alongside Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar and three members appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. The King subsequently consented to Najib’s pardon application being deferred to a future Pardons Board meeting.

Yeoh has stressed that under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution, the ultimate power and decision on pardons rests with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, including the power to defer a decision on Najib’s application.