The Pardons Board must deal with Shafee’s presser yesterday
- The Federal Constitution is very clear about the roles played by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong and members of the Pardons Board.
- Usually the deliberations by the Pardons Board are kept confidential, but Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah has openly revealed yesterday how the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) carried out the secret ballot on paper.
- I urge the Pardons Board to state clearly in no uncertain terms whether it is allowed under our law for Shafee to announce that the YDPA “was thinking of giving” a full pardon to Najib.
- Secondly, Shafee had also shown a letter to the media and read it out claiming it to be written from the Pardons Board to Najib, alleging that the Board had on Jan 29 advised the YDPA that Najib should serve out the rest of his sentence. Is Shafee also allowed under the law to reveal publicly how the YDPA had conducted a secret ballot during the meeting on Jan 29 to decide whether a full pardon should be granted to Najib?
- It appears as if Shafee was at the meeting on Jan 29 when the Pardons Board met to decide on Najib’s fate. Was Shafee invited as an eyewitness at the meeting, or did he make this all up?
- Again, I strongly urge the Pardons Board and the relevant authorities to state clearly whether the statements made by Shafee are true and his actions were not against any law.