No provisions for house arrest under the law, says NGO

Najib Razak claims that the then Yang di-Pertuan Agong had issued the supplementary decree allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: There are no legal provisions for prisoners to serve their jail sentences under house arrest, says an NGO advocating for reforms.

Projek Sama said Parliament has not enacted any such regulation that would enable “home detention” for prisoners to this day.

However, in a statement, it noted that Section 43 of the Prisons Act 1995 allows for a prisoner to be released “on licence” subject to “any regulation made” by the home minister.

Citing former prime minister Najib Razak’s claim of a purported “supplementary order” allowing him to serve the remainder of his SRC International sentence under house arrest, Projek Sama maintained that the principle of the rule of law must be observed all the more with regards to Najib’s claim and application in the High Court.

In his application filed on April 1, Najib claimed that the then Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, had issued the supplementary decree during the Federal Territories Pardons Board’s meeting on Jan 29, a day before his term ended.

Najib alleged that the “addendum order” was not announced by the board on Feb 2 and that the government was in contempt for not executing the supplementary decree.

He wants the court to compel the government to execute the supplementary decree, if it exists, to place him under house arrest.

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had filed an affidavit to support Najib’s legal challenge bid, claiming that investment, trade, and industry minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz had shown him the “addendum order” on his phone during a meeting.

Previously, home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said Putrajaya had agreed in principle to implement the Licensed Prisoner Release, which would allow inmates serving jail terms of four years or less to be given the chance to carry out their sentences at home.

Saifuddin said the home ministry was looking into how to implement the initiative, whether it was sufficient to amend existing laws or enact a new one under the prisons director-general or home minister’s authority.

He also said Najib would not qualify for this initiative since his sentence in the SRC International case is currently six years, after being halved from 12 years by the pardons board.

Previously, Projek Sama urged Putrajaya to table a white paper on the home ministry’s plan, highlighting the necessity of a transparent and consistent process in determining prisoners eligible for house arrest.

It said this would ensure the initiative would not be abused to benefit criminals who may be deemed “privileged or powerful”.