KUALA LUMPUR: DAP has conveyed to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim its request for the minutes of the Pardons Board meeting concerning former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to be declassified and made public.
DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke said the request reflected the party’s position that greater transparency was needed over the decision concerning Najib.
However, he said any move to release the minutes would be subject to the Attorney-General’s position and the necessary declassification procedures.
“We have conveyed this request to the prime minister, but there are procedures for declassifying the minutes.
“Whether and when they are released is up to the Attorney-General,” he told a press conference after officiating at the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territories DAP annual convention today.
He was responding to questions about calls from DAP Wanita and several party veterans for the minutes of the meeting to be made public.
Loke also expressed confidence that Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Hannah Yeoh had represented DAP’s and Pakatan Harapan’s positions during the relevant proceedings.
He acknowledged that the minutes were confidential and that their contents could not presently be disclosed.
However, he said releasing the minutes, if permitted, would help the public understand the process and the positions presented during the meeting.
“If the minutes can be declassified and made public, people will be able to understand the position we expressed and the entire process,” he said.
The Federal Territories Pardons Board granted Najib a conditional pardon, allowing him to serve the remainder of his sentence under house detention until Aug 23, 2028, subject to payment of a RM50 million fine.
In February 2024, the Pardons Board reduced his original 12-year prison sentence to six years and his RM210 million fine to RM50 million.