KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob says when he was prime minister, he had to do what was right rather than what was expected of him as an Umno leader, in relation to Datuk Seri Najib Razak's court cases.

While some may still call him a traitor for not stepping in to save Najib from his jail sentence, the nation's ninth prime minister said he could not do so.

He said this in the Keluar Sekejap podcast hosted by suspended Umno members Khairy Jamaluddin and Shahril Hamdan.

The duo had asked Ismail Sabri if he knew that some quarters within Umno had blamed him for not interfering in Najib's court decisions and whether this had what caused him to lose the support of Umno members.

Ismail Sabri said it was not within his power to interfere with the judiciary.

"I may have been the prime minister but I am also a lawyer by profession and I believe in the separation of powers. Any Interference in the judicial system could have very negative implications on the government as well as the trust of investors.

"It was not my place to say anything," he said, recalling a similar incident involving Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi when he was prime minister.

He stressed that the judiciary must be left independent and dealt with according to the law.

"Can you imagine, if I lobbied for Najib's release or for his charges to be dropped to the chief justice and she told the media that I contacted her about it? What a disastrous affect it would have had, not only on me as the prime minister but also the whole country's judiciary system.

"I couldn't do that. It was not only improper and against the law, but it would have a detrimental impact on the government and the economy.

"Do you think, we would have been able to draw in FDIs (foreign direct investments), if there had been any Interference?

"Moreover, Najib never once asked me to help excuse him from the case or promise to release him from any of the charges. All he asked from me was for a fair and just proceeding.

"I believe in separation of powers and any Interference from me would not reflect well on the country," he said.

Ismail Sabri said he would rather be called a traitor for doing things right rather than being glorified for something that was wrong.

The former Umno vice-president, however, urged the party leadership, particularly Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, who is now minister in the prime minister's department (law and institutional reform), to take steps to seek a full pardon for Najib from His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia.

Additionally, he said the application for Najib to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest, could be brought up again at the next Pardons Board meeting.

"This process would be more straightforward now as it does not involve judicial proceedings."

https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2024/08/1097998/ismail-sabri-pm-i-couldnt-interfere-najibs-case