Najib's last chance

The official communique from UMNO is they respect the decision of YDPA and will continue with effort to seek for Najib's release. If it is any consolation, Shad wrote below: 

In accordance with the Board’s order, Najib can be released from custody on Aug 23, 2028. However, there are several variable and unpredictable factors.

First, there is no bar to repeated acts of clemency. In due course of time, he may receive another remission to hasten his release.

Second, under Section 43 of the Prisons Regulations 2000, a prisoner sentenced to a term of imprisonment exceeding one month may be granted remission of one-third of his sentence for good behaviour. However, this is subject to the terms of an order of the Pardons Board, and that order is to release him on Aug 23, 2028. So, the one-third remission rule cannot apply to Najib.

Third, under Section 46A of the Prisons Act, there are complicated rules about parole. A prisoner may be released to serve any part of his sentence outside the prison pursuant to a Parole Order.

Fourth, as there is no bar to repeated acts of clemency, Najib could be gifted with another act of clemency and given a full pardon, which would wipe away the conviction and all disabilities.

Retired judge, Hamid Sultan Abu Backer, whose sympathetic to the unfair treatment Najib gets in court suggested for another bid for full pardon with YDPA Sultan Ibrahim in the same manner late Mokhtar Hashim received his release.   

To do so, UMNO must be more serious to push for RCI against Tommy Thomas and judicial reform. It was the basis used by DPP to withdrawal Zahid's Yayasan Akal Budi case.  

There is an immediate plan to get a petition for a million signature. The last effort done had no UMNO support and managed slightly more than 700,000 signatures online. Prove they could secure 2 million signatories.

Most important, the basis and narrative for the petition must be legally sound, highlight extraordinary circumstances acceptable to YDPA and get public buy-in. The earlier effort was inadequate.

A piece of advice to UMNO:

Sometimes one need mass media and hype to achieve the desired outcome from the masses such as getting votes during political campaign. Most of the time, to achieve the task or objective involving few decision makers is not to be noisy. Learn methods of complex selling from supersalesman or policy lobby of Washington and UN.

PR at times is useful to swing public opinion and indirectly pressure the few decision makers. But not all the time and still its about the few decision makers. PR effort done in cocophonic fashion, too many heros, stubborn prima donna, too much emotional housewives' tales and absence of clear takeaways will only result in poor public buy-in and a disastrous failure ensue.

The result speaks for itself. 

Read in full at Thick as a Brick here