IT seems that the road to incarcerated former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s house arrest is not as straight forward as “you settle the RM50 mil fine and you get to spend your remaining jail time at home”.
What panned out as can be seen yesterday (Nov 6) is that the roads from Kajang Prison to Bossku’s Jalan Langgak Duta mansion – now gazetted as a prison by the Home Ministry – is likely to be one long, winding and bumpy ride.
For starters, there was no hoax this time around as the RM50 mil was paid to the Kuala Lumpur High Court – purportedly by UMNO through funds collected from the party’s Najib Razak Solidarity Fund crowdfund drive – to fulfil the royal pardon condition for Bossku to serve the remainder of his SRC International Sdn Bhd sentence under house arrest.
As Bossku’s fanbase was rejoicing over the 10-term former Pekan MP’s home-coming, haters led by probably his biggest nemesis Tony Pua – the man instrumental in unearthing 1MDB’s financial irregularities – has demanded to know donors who raised a big chunk of the RM50 mil “to send Malaysia’s biggest crook home for house arrest”.
“Instead of using such a large sum of money to help ordinary Malaysians, they chose ‘to free’ Malaysia’s most corrupt. UMNO colours shine very brightly,” mocked the now DAP disciplinary committee chief in a Facebook post.
More importantly, I call upon Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and the MACC (Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission) to audit the money trails going into UMNO’s donation account for Najib to make sure that all the funds raised were legitimate – and not laundered.
It is time for Malaysians regardless of race, religion or creed, to once again see UMNO/BN’s (Barisan Nasional) true colours.
Anthony Loke gentlemanly steps down
Echoing Pua was Madani keyboard warrior Jason Yew who, too, raised concerns about donor identity and transparency.
“But the lingering question remains the same for the rakyat: where did this RM50 mil come from? Who is the donor? Is the fund source transparent and compliant with the law?” he penned on Threads.
“The money has been paid yet the source question remains unanswered. RM50 mil is not a small amount. Transparency is mandatory! 🔎”
Even Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim joined the fray by expressing “personal disagreement” with UMNO’s decision to pay the RM50 mil fine on Bossku’s behalf to drive home the message that corruption and abuse of power must not be taken lightly in the name of friendship.
As the drama was unfolding, the spotlight was shone on DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke Siew Fook who lived up to his words by having confirmed (albeit with a caveat) that his resignation as the Transport Minister will take effect the moment Bossku arrives at his residence to begin house arrest.
“My resignation letter had already been submitted earlier and my position remained unchanged … This is my party’s decision and I’ll abide by it,” he told a media conference at his Putrajaya office yesterday (Nov 6).
“However, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail had informed me that Najib had not yet been allowed to return home (yet).”
UMNO sees red
As everything seemed to be panning out in UMNO’s favour, it has to be that Madani backers would have the last laugh when the Attorney-General’s Chamber (AGC) threw a spanner in what UMNO loyalists claimed to be a delay tactic by declaring that Bossku’s house arrest should be temporarily postponed pending legal clarification.
This sparked an uproar with Bossku’s lead defence counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah claiming that the AGC has no basis to delay Bossku’s house arrest as the disgraced sixth premier has met all the condition set by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
The senior lawyer hit out as an “executive overreach” for the AGC to suspend conditions set under the royal prerogative of mercy granted by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, on Sept 18, including payment of the RM50 mi fine to the KL High Court.
“Every condition His Majesty set has been met, hence there is no lawful reason for our client to remain in Penjara Kajang a moment longer.
“We therefore demand that our client be released immediately into house arrest at his residence, as his majesty has ordered and the High Court has directed,” he said.
As Bossku’s daughter Nooryana Najwa lamented the AGC having delayed her father’s home-coming, UMNO information chief Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has called on the AGC to promptly explain the legal basis for the proposed deferment of Bossku’s house arrest.
“UMNO upholds the Agong’s powers of pardon under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution,” the de facto law minister pointed out in a statement.
The conditional pardon decree and the High Court order must be respected and given effect in accordance with the law.
UMNO takes seriously the questions raised by the lawyers over what it views as inconsistencies in the AGC’s position.
The RM50 mil fine has been recorded as paid, the High Court has also issued an order and DS Najib’s residence has been gazetted as a prison under the Prisons Act 1995.
Meanwhile Najib’s mansion at Langgak Duta has been gazetted as a prison. Not sure what that would do to the property value of Taman Duta. Thoughts and prayers https://t.co/6KYkjsCMbr
— Hadi Azmi (@amerhadiazmi) November 6, 2026
At the end of the day, assuming that his resignation is not retracted, Loke is perhaps the biggest winner by virtue of the applauses he earned from both Madani backers and the UMNO fraction for being “a man of principle”.
For little that we know, JAKIM (Department of Islamic Development Malaysia)may eventually rule that the Seremban MP’s stepping down from his transport portfolio is after all haram as there are gambling elements involved: the DAP secretary-general has indulged in a game of bet with his Madani ally-turned-foe UMNO.
In Malaysian politics, it is always wise to expect the unexpected. – Nov 7, 2026
