IMPUNITY. This is not an everyday word for Malaysians, but it describes the Najib years best. Simply put, impunity means doing something with little fear of consequences.

Najib Razak and his friends did what they did because they could. They were in power and wanted to stay in power, and so they bent every rule, law, and institution to their will.

Often, the former prime minister and his operatives trampled on the federal constitution to achieve their desired outcomes.

For the best example of acting with impunity, look no further than the manner in which the Najib government reappointed Raus Sharif and Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin as chief justice and chief judge of Malaya for a period of three years.

Both were due to retire in August and September last year. But the constitution was twisted like an elastic band so that the prime minister could make the case for their extensions.

The general consensus among lawyers and constitutional experts was that even the most liberal reading of the constitution would not have allowed Raus and Zulkefli to remain in their positions for a day longer.

But Najib wanted two friendly faces in the Palace of Justice, so a legal opinion favourable to the government’s position on the extension was sought and obtained.

That single opinion gave Najib the cover to do something no other prime minister of Malaysia had done, not even Mahathir 1.0 in his judiciary thrashing days.

Looking back, it is incredible that the country’s top two judges, on whose shoulders the system of justice rests, chose to accept the disputed extension.

After all, didn’t Raus and Zulkefli swear to uphold the federal constitution? Instead, they became parties to the highest law of the land being treated with contempt by Najib.

Mind you, the former prime minister and his operatives acted with impunity on countless occasions during his time in office.

In a single day, Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s sons were audited by officials of the Inland Revenue Board. Critics of Najib were also visited by the tax officials.

Other institutions such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the Royal Malaysian Police, and the Securities Commission were also used by Najib’s operatives to punish or cow into silence anyone who became a nuisance for the Najib regime.

Najib’s operatives, such as Habibul Abdul Rahman, publicly and proudly declared how much power they had over key institutions in Malaysia.

Just one phone call and the tax man could be at your doorstep. Another phone call and all your legal problems could disappear.

Sometime last year, Habibul reached out to a senior Pakatan Harapan politician with a simple request: stab Dr Mahathir Mohamad in the back and a troublesome legal situation would go away.

Najib’s chief black ops guy was told to take a hike. Habibul didn’t take the rebuff kindly.

In another instance, a corporate figure was asked to slag PH off in public. In return, he would receive a more favourable hearing at the appeal stage of his court case.

Did Najib and his operatives really control the courts and could they create legal problems or make them disappear?

Probably.

During the Najib years, everything was done with impunity. – June 13, 2018.