Dear Nooryana, your father belongs in prison, not at home

Phlip Rodrigues

Dear Nooryana Najwa: You and Umno seemed to think your father, Najib Razak, deserved a pardon. You wanted him out of prison, back home, playing with his grandchildren.

All of you still seem to believe ‘Bossku’ was treated unjustly. That covers his corruption trial, his conviction and his time in prison.

Umno, which your father once led as its president, is not giving up the fight for justice for its beloved leader. But it is not clear what kind of justice you people are fighting for.

You, too, have joined the chorus of Umno members who want the palace to forgive him. You want him to move back into the comfort of family life.

You reportedly said that if your father is freed but still wants to stay in politics, he could simply play the role of a mere supporter.

But that fools no one. It is certain that your dad has support within his power base and probably harbours ambitions to lead the party he once headed.

How you must wish to see him back in the driving seat, going after his enemies to vindicate himself. Perhaps you see yourself as his closest adviser on how to steer the country into accepting him back into national leadership.

Perhaps you think that if Anwar Ibrahim himself could get a royal pardon and go on to become prime minister, your father could do the same.

Of course, as the new Puteri Umno information chief, you will enter the fray yourself to campaign for his cause and probably spin a tall story about his innocence.

Perhaps you even believe Umno has nothing to be ashamed of over what Bossku did – just as Anwar Ibrahim’s own supporters saw no shame in marching for his release when he was in prison. But does that mean the rest of us should feel none either?

Likewise, you probably wish Umno would take to the streets again to demand your father’s release.

If your father is released, Umno members will surely make their way to your home to pay homage to their leader and probably urge him to return and take charge of the party.

And when an Umno general assembly or a special party meeting is held, your father will probably be carried into the hall on his adoring supporters’ shoulders, to the roar of “Hidup Najib!” (long live Najib!) and “Hidup Umno!” (long live Umno!).

But, Nooryana, all this is just wishful thinking. You are putting your trust in Umno to see your father through what you see is his trial and tribulation.

But it is not Umno’s voice that matters here. What matters most are the voices of the millions of ordinary people who followed the financial scandal that brought shame on the nation, at home and abroad.

Put plainly, your father was convicted of stealing from the country’s coffers and abusing his power to do it, in a scandal that ran into billions of ringgit. He was rightly punished for both.

If you are not ashamed of his crime, we, the people, are filled with shame on your behalf. All your attempts to gloss over your father’s misdeeds will be in vain, because most people will never buy your story. It has no public value at all.

Perhaps you should tell the grandchildren why their grandfather went on a “long holiday”. Even if they are kept in the dark now, they will one day learn the truth about this disgraceful chapter in the country’s history.

Nooryana, in your family’s court and in Umno’s court, Najib is seen as free of all guilt.

But in the court of public opinion and in the real court of law, your father got his comeuppance. He belongs in prison, not at home.

Phlip Rodrigues is a retired journalist.

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