Here Are What 10 Politicians And Organisations Had To Say About Najib's Guilty Ruling

Under High Court Judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali, Najib was sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd.

After being found guilty of all seven corruption charges, Najib conveyed his disappointment to the press. 

Malay Mail quoted the convicted former prime minister as saying, "I am very disappointed in the judiciary in the SRC case because… my lawyer has made arguments that could raise many doubts about the case although these were not accepted."

"However, I hope this case in the Court of Appeal will be heard as soon as possible because I want to continue my effort to clear my name and I will continue this fight," he added.

The acting Pekan Member of Parliament (MP) told UMNO Online: "I will not lose hope."

Najib's lead counsel Shafee Abdullah expressed his honest views on the ruling.

According to Malay Mail, Shafee said, "This judgment is honest, he (Judge Mohd Nazlan) is an honest man, and he honestly made various mistakes."

"My only complaint is that he does not seem to apply the criminal concept and philosophies of criminal law. He seems to have applied a more civil concept."

"In criminal law, when there is reasonable doubt in a case, you have to throw the case out, while in civil cases, you do a balancing act, deciding between which person is telling the truth," Shafee claimed.

The lawyer added that they will be appealing Najib's conviction and sentencing.

Sithambaram, who practised law for more than 30 years, joined the prosecution team early last year.

"This is a victory for justice. Of course, it's a huge relief for us with the findings of the learned judge," he said.

In response to Shafee's assertion that Judge Nazlan had made an "honest mistake", Sithambaram was quoted by Malay Mail as saying, "There is no judge that is not honest. He (Judge Nazlan) has heard the case for 100 days with 57 witnesses from the prosecution and 19 witnesses from the defence.

"He has read all that and his judgement today was testimony that he has considered all the facts and he has come and made a finding based on fact," he said.

In a statement, Muhyiddin said that the government respects the court's decision. He urged all parties to trust that the country's legal and judicial system are independent and neutral institutions. 

Bernama quoted the eighth Prime Minister as saying, "I understand the feelings and sentiments of my friends towards the decision that has been made by the court."

"Nevertheless, I would like to emphasise that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) Government will always uphold the principle of the rule of law," he said in a statement last night. 

At the same time, Muhyiddin said the government also recognised Najib's right to appeal against the sentence imposed on him.

"Let us together give space to the legal process to ensure that justice can be upheld."

The AG, who resigned from his position on 4 March, declined to comment on the SRC International trial after contacted by Malay Mail. 

"It is not proper for me to comment. I've resigned and that's it. I'm history."

Zahid, who is also the Bagan Datuk MP, told Malaysiakini yesterday: "Surely, we will make a political decision as a result of today's decision."

"I hope we will remain calm and be open to any decision that the party will undertake."

Though he respected the decision made by Judge Nazlan, he expressed sadness over the verdict.

"On behalf of UMNO, we abide by the decision the court has made against Najib."

"I am also saddened by this decision and believe that Najib is a resilient and brave person,’’ said Zahid on his Facebook.

Signed by Parti Keadilan Rakyat president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, Parti Amanah Negara president Mohamad Sabu, and DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, the statement celebrated the ruling saying, "The result is a great victory for the Malaysian people."

"The presidential council would like to thank all parties involved in this process, including the former attorney general who initiated legal proceedings."

However, they stressed the need for comprehensive institutional reforms to prevent this from happening in the future.

"The presidential council is of the view that comprehensive institutional reforms must be implemented to ensure that the political climate that allows for the erosion and damage that occurred during the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration is not repeated."

Latheefa, who served as the fifth chief commissioner of the MACC from June 2019 to March 2020, took to Twitter immediately after Najib's sentencing.

"Justice is done. We can all be grateful to the true heroes from every level of the MACC who at great personal risk investigated and built up the case when Najib was still in power."

"And well done to the prosecution team as well!"

The 'TangkapNajib' Protest was a peaceful demonstration organised by youth activist group Demi Malaysia in 2015. They called for the resignation of Najib after the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal was exposed. 

In a Facebook post, Mandeep said, "This was made possible by all of us, Malaysians, together with the strong solidarity from across the globe. We Malaysians did it!"

"The battle may not be over yet, but this one is one great victory for all of us."

The activist had been arrested by the police on 31 July 2015, a day before the TangkapNajib rally was to take place.

Kuching-born journalist Rewcastle Brown wrote extensively about the 1MDB scandal in 2015. Much of the evidence she had uncovered appeared during the trials.

Under the Najib administration, Malaysians were blocked access to Sarawak Report. Rewcastle Brown was accused of breaching laws and a warrant was issued for her arrest.

When contacted by Malaysiakini, she said, "Of course it felt like a vindication to hear the judge lay out in such clear and precise terms the confirmation of all we have been writing about."

"It is no longer 'foreign lies'. It is a solid judgment by a Malaysian judge after months of going through the facts and listening to the arguments."

"I hope that now the Malaysian people can be assured, thanks to their courts, that they now know exactly what happened and who was responsible for and profited from this vast, world record theft," she said.