‘Court cluster’ comeback unlikely with Najib’s conviction, says analyst

[superadmin]

PETALING JAYA: A comeback for Umno’s “court cluster” is unlikely after the Federal Court affirmed Najib Razak’s conviction and sentence in the SRC International case, says a political analyst.

James Chin of the University of Tasmania’s Asia Institute said the court’s ruling today would pave the way for Ismail Sabri Yaakob to be the leading prime ministerial candidate for Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) at the next general election.

“The court’s decision is really good news for Ismail and other Umno-BN members currently in government.

“They no longer have to worry about the court cluster making a comeback,” he told FMT.

Chin said Umno was likely to distance itself from Najib, and he expected the party to state that it would not interfere with the judiciary.

He said the party would assure voters it could be trusted to restore political stability in the country.

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