Saifuddin says ministry awaits Pardons Board letter, no Najib house arrest notification yet

The Malaysian Home Ministry is awaiting an official notification from the Pardons Board concerning the potential house arrest of former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak before deciding subsequent actions.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail noted that official directives are needed to determine the premises for the house arrest, currently unaddressed in Malaysian law.

Najib, serving a reduced six-year sentence, might transition to house arrest, while Malaysia explores legislative measures to manage prison capacity challenges.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19 — The Home Ministry is still waiting for the official written notification of the Pardons Board’s reported decision to place former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak under house arrest before deciding on its next course of action.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the ministry and Prisons Department had yet to receive the letter from the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department, which serves as the secretariat to the Pardons Board.

“Once we receive the notification, only then will we be clear about what further action we need to take, and the steps towards implementing the decision in accordance with the existing provisions of the law.

“As of now, we have not received anything,” he told reporters in Kulim, Kedah today.

He was visiting the families of four young boys who drowned in Taman Desa Kayangan, Sungai Karangan after trying to retrieve a ball.

Saifuddin said the letter would also clarify whether the Pardons Board had specified the premises where Najib would serve his reported house arrest, or whether the matter had been left to the Prisons Department.

“I need to see the letter first. Currently, Datuk Seri Najib is serving his prison sentence. House arrest means he will not be in prison but at another premises, and there are naturally processes to follow. That is why I said I want to see the letter first,” he said.

He said the ministry would also examine whether the Pardons Board’s decision contained any further instructions or delegated authority to the Prisons Department.

“Based on that letter, we will see whether it is limited to the decision of the Pardons Board, or whether the Board has also given further authority to the Prisons Department. We will examine all of that,” he said.

Saifuddin said Najib was currently still serving his prison sentence, adding that house arrest would mean he was no longer held in prison but instead serve his sentence at another premises, subject to the relevant procedures.

He also referred to the Pardons Board’s previous decision to reduce Najib’s 12-year prison sentence to six years and his RM210 million fine to RM50 million.

Saifuddin said the ministry had subsequently informed Najib that if he paid the reduced RM50 million fine, his release date would be August 23, 2028, while failure to pay would result in a release date of August 23, 2029.

Saifuddin said Malaysia currently had no specific law governing the mechanism for house arrest.

He said he had previously obtained Cabinet agreement in principle to begin the process of introducing a House Arrest Act, but the proposal was initially intended to address prison overcrowding, particularly involving remand prisoners.

Saifuddin said Malaysia currently had 41 prisons housing about 93,000 inmates, against a total capacity of around 75,000.

Under the proposed mechanism, remand prisoners could potentially be placed under house arrest and monitored through modern electronic devices until their trial dates.

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马来西亚内政部正在等待赦免委员会就前首相拿督斯里纳吉布·拉扎克可能被软禁一事发出正式通知，然后再决定后续行动。

内政部长拿督斯里赛夫丁·纳苏蒂安·伊斯梅尔指出，需要官方指示来确定软禁场所，而马来西亚法律目前尚未对此作出规定。

纳吉布的刑期被减至六年，他可能会被转为居家监禁，而马来西亚正在探索立法措施来应对监狱容量挑战。

吉隆坡，9月19日讯——内政部仍在等待赦免委员会正式书面通知，以决定是否将前首相拿督斯里纳吉·拉扎克软禁在家，然后再决定下一步行动。

内政部长拿督斯里赛夫丁·纳苏蒂安·伊斯梅尔表示，内政部和监狱局尚未收到首相署法律事务司的来信，该司是赦免委员会的秘书处。

“只有在我们收到通知后，我们才能清楚地知道我们需要采取哪些进一步行动，以及如何根据现行法律规定来执行该决定。

“截至目前，我们还没有收到任何东西，”他今天在吉打州居林告诉记者。

他当时正在探望在卡扬安村塔曼德萨卡扬安溺水身亡的四名男孩的家属，这些男孩在试图捡球时不幸溺亡。

赛夫丁表示，这封信还将澄清赦免委员会是否已指定纳吉布将在其被报道的软禁期间服刑的地点，或者此事是否已交由监狱部门处理。

“我需要先看看这封信。目前，拿督斯里纳吉正在服刑。居家监禁意味着他不在监狱里，而是在另一个地方，自然需要遵循一些程序。所以我才说我想先看看这封信，”他说。

他说，该部还将审查赦免委员会的决定是否包含任何进一步的指示或向监狱部门授予的权力。

他说：“根据这封信，我们将看看其效力是否仅限于赦免委员会的决定，还是委员会也赋予了监狱部门进一步的权力。我们将对此进行全面审查。”

赛夫丁表示，纳吉目前仍在服刑，并补充说，居家监禁意味着他不再被关押在监狱，而是在其他场所服刑，但需遵守相关程序。

他还提到赦免委员会之前的决定，将纳吉布的 12 年监禁减至 6 年，2.1 亿令吉罚款减至 5000 万令吉。

赛夫丁表示，该部随后告知纳吉，如果他缴纳减少后的 5000 万令吉罚款，他的释放日期将是 2028 年 8 月 23 日；如果不缴纳罚款，他的释放日期将是 2029 年 8 月 23 日。

赛夫丁表示，马来西亚目前没有专门的法律来规范软禁机制。

他表示，他之前已原则上获得内阁同意，开始制定《居家监禁法》，但该提案最初的目的是解决监狱过度拥挤的问题，特别是涉及还押犯的问题。

赛夫丁表示，马来西亚目前有41所监狱，关押着约93000名囚犯，而监狱的总容量约为75000人。

根据拟议的机制，还押候审的囚犯有可能被软禁在家，并通过现代电子设备进行监控，直到审判日期。

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