UMNO will stand behind former prime minister Najib Razak in other court hearings, party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said.

In a statement, Zahid said Umno is disappointed with the court’s refusal to grant the Pekan MP a fair trial by rejecting his application to adduce new evidence.

“We will stand behind Najib Razak in other court hearings, despite him failing in his final bid to appeal the guilty conviction in the SRC International case.

“For Umno, the Federal Court’s decision cannot erase Najib’s great service as a prime minister who brought Malaysia up as a beacon of success and put Malaysia on the stage before being overshadowed by the failure of two governments after the 14th general election,” he said.

Najib began his 12-year jail sentence at the Kajang prison after the Federal Court quashed his appeal and upheld his sentence in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case.

In addition to the jail sentence, Najib will have to pay a RM210 million fine, in default of which he will have to serve another five years in jail.

Sending a message to Umno members, Zahid urged them to stay calm and focused on fixing current flaws in the justice system.

Najib is not the only Umno man facing corruption charges. Zahid himself is facing 47 charges – 12 counts of criminal breach of trust in relation to RM31 million in charitable foundation Yayasan Akalbudi funds, 27 counts of money laundering, and eight counts of bribery.

The Bagan Datuk MP has denied all charges. – August 24, 2022.