Will The Najib House Arrest Issue Tear Our Nation Apart

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Will the Najib Razak house arrest issue tear our people apart and set us on course to becoming a failed nation?
In this article, I will not be writing about the various agendas of political parties on this issue, as they all have many agendas; of toppling the current government and forming a new one, forging future electoral alliances and also intra-party political witch-hunts.
None of these bickering parties concern me at the moment. My main concern is what will happen to us, Malaysians.
When we talk about a “state” and “country”, we refer to our borders and government machinery, but a “nation” is about the people with a shared history, one built on three types of trust.
Firstly, there is trust between peoples of all races, religions and cultures. Secondly, there must be trust between citizens and the political leaders. And thirdly, there must be trust in the constitution.
From my reading on the Najib house arrest issue, I understand that there are two legal positions.
One group of legal experts provide the narrative that, firstly, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong must act in accordance with the advice of the Federal Territories Pardon’s Board. Therefore, his power to grant pardons is not absolute.
Secondly, they contend that the pardons board and Agong have no business placing inmates under house arrest. Even the reduction of prison sentences and fines are not explicitly within the powers of the pardons board and Agong, they say.
However, the other group of legal experts contend that the Agong’s power to grant pardons is absolute and cannot be disputed. That means if the Agong wants to allow someone to serve their jail time under house arrest, then it must be done to the letter, with or without the consent of the other members of the pardons board.
In this case, the members of the pardons board simply perform a clerical and secretarial function.
What if Najib is granted or denied house arrest?
If Najib is placed under house arrest, many Malaysians will feel slighted. Their main question will be whether there is a special privilege or class of people not defined by the constitution. This will result in the loss of trust and faith in the constitution.
The people will also lose faith in the unity government, which will be put on the chopping block in the next general election.
Then there is the loss of trust between most Malays and non-Malays, regardless of political affiliations. Non-Malays, in particular, will no longer have faith in our nation and country.
If Najib is denied house arrest, Umno might be forced to pull out of the unity government, which will either lead to a general election or Perikatan Nasional taking over the federal government, with a puppet Umno prime minister installed. If Umno does pull out of the government, I hope that there would be a general election.
If the house arrest is denied, then what will become of the Agong who had issued the addendum? Will he be seen as not understanding the constitution? Will Umno and PN accuse the unity government and its supporters of treason?
Both scenarios, whether the house arrest is granted or denied, lead to the same path: a loss of trust between Malaysians of different races and religions, and between the people and our political leadership.
How do we progress? Will the court decide for or against the house arrest? Or will there be a third option that would save our nation from the certain destruction of trust and faith among the people and between citizens and the administration?
I would implore that everyone forego all the political drama that has come with the addendum issue and just wait for the High Court to deliver its verdict on Najib’s judicial review.
After the court has ruled, we may either be back on track as a nation or remain in the present status quo of mistrust.
For all our sakes, let us pray that the judges in the court of law would rule with great wisdom and conscience. Amen. - FMT
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.

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