To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 4: Conspiracy Theories From Outer Space

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There are many theories, or should we call them conspiracy theories, regarding Najib's pardon appeal. There are too many to list, but here are a few:- (1) If Najib is released, he could become a political threat to the unity government. (2) Once released, he would challenge the post of UMNO presidency, putting Zahid and ultimately the PH Unity Government at risk; (3) Or, he might join PN and strengthen PN's challenge for the crucial Malay votes in the next election; (4) The Yang di-Pertuan Agong wanted to give full royal pardon but was objected to by the Attoney General and the Federal Territory Minister. Let's analyze each of the above:- Najib as a political force. We should not forget, UMNO had been the ruling government since independence in 1957, a total of 61 years continuously. It went down in GE14 in 2018. Najib was UMNO's last prime minister proving he, or UMNO, was not invincible at all. Nonetheless, Najib star shone again during the state el...
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To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 1

In simple English PARDON means to forgive. Pardon, in law, means release from guilt or remission of punishment. In criminal law, the power of pardon is generally exercised by the chief executive officer or ruler of the state. Wikipedia says a pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the jurisdiction.

Most countries have a pardon sytem, but the implementation of it differs from country to country.

In The United States, the president has absolute power to pardon, but it is limited to federal crimes except for impeachment. And they don't even have a pardon board like us. State crimes come under the authority of state governors.

One of the most controversial pardons by any sitting America presidents was the one issued by Gerald Ford in 1974, when he issued a proclamation pardoning Richard Nixon. He granted Richard Nixon "full, free, and absolute pardon" that ended any possibility of an indictment because of Watergate scandal. The controversy resulted in Gerald Ford losing the presidental election to Jimmy Carter in 1976

The USA will held another presidential election at the end of this year, and another controversy is looming on the horizon. The probability of Donald Trump winning the presidential election cannot be discounted. Trump has massive legal problems, both civil or criminal and I have lost count of how many. Should he win, can he pardon himself? Thats the RM2 billion question, and many people whether law experts or laymen agree he could legally pardon himself.

In Singapore, pardon is known as presidential clemency. Under the Singapore Constitution, power is held by the president of Singapore but upon the advice of the cabinet. In 2018, the then Singapore president Halimah Yacob granted clemency to one Anthony Ler, a murder accomplice. Probably one of the reasons for this because Ler committed the offence when he was below 18. Singapore rarely pardons people on the death row. And often the state does not provide grounds or reasons for its clemency

Pardon in Indonesia is the sole authority of its president, as provided under Article 14 of Indonesia’s 1945 Constitution. In Thailand, acts of clemency, better known as royal pardon lies entirely in the discretion of the King of Thailand

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To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 2: Lee Meng, Mokhtar Hashim

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Lee Meng Lee Meng, a famous communist courier during the Malayan Emergency, was captured by the Special Branch in the early 1950s. She was sentenced to death for possession of a hand grenade and for ordering several murders. Her case attracted worldwide attention, including an offer by the then-communist government of Hungary to swap her freedom with a British spy detained in Budapest. Lee Meng in court Her appeal to the Privy Council was also rejected. Point to note: until 1978, final appeals for criminal cases must have been referred to the Privy Council, now replaced by the Malaysian Supreme Court. Since her conviction was in a Perak court, her final appeal was for pardon from the Perak Sultan. And interestingly, her appeal for pardon was supported by more than 50 members of the Malayan Parliament. Even Winston Churchill, the then British Prime Minister, strongly argued against her pardon, but the Sultan of Perak agreed to pardon her, and she was banished to China after...
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To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 4: Conspiracy Theories From Outer Space

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There are many theories, or should we call them conspiracy theories, regarding Najib's pardon appeal. There are too many to list, but here are a few:- (1) If Najib is released, he could become a political threat to the unity government. (2) Once released, he would challenge the post of UMNO presidency, putting Zahid and ultimately the PH Unity Government at risk; (3) Or, he might join PN and strengthen PN's challenge for the crucial Malay votes in the next election; (4) The Yang di-Pertuan Agong wanted to give full royal pardon but was objected to by the Attoney General and the Federal Territory Minister. Let's analyze each of the above:- Najib as a political force. We should not forget, UMNO had been the ruling government since independence in 1957, a total of 61 years continuously. It went down in GE14 in 2018. Najib was UMNO's last prime minister proving he, or UMNO, was not invincible at all. Nonetheless, Najib star shone again during the state el...
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Article 42 says:- (1) The Yang di-Pertuan Agong has power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of all offences which have been tried by court-martial and all offences committed in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan; and the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri of a State has power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of all other offences committed in his State. (2) Subject to Clause (10), and without prejudice to any provision of federal or State law to remit, suspend or commute sentences for any offence shall be exercisable by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong if the sentence was passed by a court- martial or by a civil court exercising jurisdiction in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan and, in any other case, shall be exercisable by the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri of the State in which the offence was committed. (3) Where an offence was committed wholly or partly outside the Federation or in more than one State or in circu...
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