Malaysia Pardons Board Members Seen at Palace as Najib Clemency Bid Awaited

A member of Malaysia's pardons board was seen arriving at the royal palace on Friday, amid speculation that the panel could meet to consider jailed former prime minister Najib Razak's request for a royal pardon.

Hannah Yeoh, the federal territories minister in the prime minister's office and a member of the board, was observed entering the palace. An aide confirmed her presence there but declined to give further details. Malaysian media outlets reported that the attorney-general, who also sits on the board, was seen arriving as well. The palace did not mention any meeting on its Facebook page that day.

The pardons board is chaired by the king, Sultan Ibrahim. Last week, the monarch postponed a decision on Najib's clemency bid, ruling that consideration of the request should be deferred to the next meeting without indicating when that would be held.

Najib, 73, served as prime minister from 2009 to 2018 and has been in prison since 2022. He is seeking a fresh royal pardon over his conviction in a case linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a state fund he co-founded while in office. Investigators have alleged that more than $1 billion from the fund flowed into accounts connected to him. Najib has denied wrongdoing, saying he was made a scapegoat for the embezzlement of what US investigators say was $4.5 billion in a complex, globe-spanning scheme.

In 2024, the pardons board, then chaired by the previous king, halved Najib's original 12-year jail sentence and reduced the fines imposed on him. Najib has maintained that the decision also included house arrest, but a legal effort to secure that outcome was unsuccessful.

In December last year, he was sentenced to an additional 15 years in prison and fined $2.8 billion for abuse of power and money laundering in another 1MDB-related case. He has lodged an appeal.