JAILED former prime minister Najib Razak’s defence team will use the favourable findings of the United Nations Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) to petition the Federal Court to review his conviction, his lead lawyer, Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, said.

Speaking at a forum in Kuala Lumpur last night, Shafee said the petition to the UN committee to investigate Najib’s unfair hearing was expected to be reviewed and completed by the year end.

He said the main point of Najib’s petition to UNWGAD as well as in his pardon application to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong was that Najib’s lawyer, Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, was not allowed to prepare for the appeal case in the Federal Court last year.

The apex court had then refused Hisyam’s request for an adjournment after Najib’s eleventh-hour decision to swap his legal team.

The court in a panel of five judges went on to affirm Najib’s conviction and sentencing by upholding a High Court decision to jail him for 12 years and to fine him RM210 million for criminal breach of trust, abuse of power and money laundering for illegally receiving RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd.

His sentence began on August 23 last year. He is currently incarcerated at Kajang Prison.

His subsequent application to review the Federal Court ruling was dismissed by another five-member Federal Court panel in March.

At the forum titled “Town Hall for Justice – Keadilan Sebenarnya Untuk Siapa”, Shafee said there was precedent for UNWGAD findings being used to apply for a review.

He said favourable findings by UNWGAD had helped Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

“The (UNWGAD) said this was the most unfair trial that Lula has ever had. So they gave a strong opinion that was used by Lula for a second review at the Supreme Federal Court,” said Shafee, as quoted by the Star Online.

“We can emulate what Lula did; filing for a second review at the Federal Court.

“The judges who were at the first review cannot hear the second one.” – October 1, 2023.