Lawyer questions 'special treatment' for Najib after Zahid prison visit

A lawyer has questioned the treatment given to Najib Razak in prison following the disclosure by Umno leader Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that he spent nearly two hours with the former prime minister, accompanied by members of the party's Supreme Council recently. 

Speaking to MalaysiaNow, Rafique Rashid described the visit as an example of double standards by the home ministry and Prisons Department.

He also said that the parties concerned had violated the rules and regulations in their visit to Kajang Prison.

He said it was standard practice for members of the public, including lawyers and family members of prisoners, to comply with the conditions and visitation procedures laid out by the prison authorities. 

For example, he said, visitors are not allowed to communicate with the prisoners face-to-face but must speak through the phone while separated by a glass divider. 

They are also prohibited from bringing in communication devices such as phones and recorders, as well as food and drinks. 

"Why the different story when Zahid visited Najib?" he added. 

Speaking at the Umno general assembly on Saturday, Zahid said he had visited Najib, bringing with him some of the former leader's favourite food which he said they had enjoyed together. 

Rafique also asked how Zahid had managed to spend two hours with Najib when visitors are limited to 45 minutes under tight supervision by prison officers and wardens. 

He urged the home ministry and Prisons Commissioner General Nordin Muhamad to address the questions that had arisen after Zahid's disclosure. 

As a lawyer, he said, he had always gone through the stipulated procedure for prison visits which he added had never changed. 

"The internal rules for the Prisons Department are still the same," he said. 

"Doesn't the country practise an equal legal system? Have pity on the other prisoners as well." 

Najib, the former Pekan MP, began serving a 12-year jail sentence last August after losing his final bid for a review of his SRC International case.

The High Court found him guilty in 2020 of criminal breach of trust, money laundering, and abuse of power in relation to the appropriation of RM42 million, a verdict upheld by the Court of Appeal and Federal Court.