By Peter John Jaban, Founder Saya Anak Sarawak
Deputy President,Gllobal Human Rights Federation ( Malaysia )
KOTA KINABALU: The recent court decision in the Najib Razak case sends a clear and unmistakable message to the nation.
This conviction is not merely a legal outcome; it is a powerful signal that abuse of power can be challenged, exposed, and judged.
Power does not place anyone above accountability. This outcome was not gifted by the system—it was forced into existence by years of pressure, exposure, and the rakyat’s insistence on truth. This moment belongs to the people who refused to forget, refused to be distracted, and refused to accept impunity as normal.
Institutional Effort and the Rule of Law
We acknowledge the unwavering commitment of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigators and prosecutors who pursued this case over many years despite pressure, resistance, and repeated attempts to undermine accountability.
Their persistence demonstrates that corruption can be confronted when institutions are allowed to do their work.
MACC Chief Commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki has publicly recognised these teams for securing the conviction and for the strong cooperation across multiple agencies.
This collective effort proves that meaningful action against corruption requires courage, coordination, and institutional independence.
We also salute the judiciary for upholding the rule of law and conducting the trial in a transparent and thorough manner. At a time when public confidence is often tested, the courts remain a vital pillar in ensuring that justice is decided by evidence and law not by power or influence.
Malaysian taxpayers owe and thanks Justo and Rewcastle Brown is less about personal praise and more about acknowledging reality.
Acknowledging the roles of Xavier André Justo and Clare Rewcastle Brown is not about personal praise, but about recognising reality.
The truth emerged despite the system, not because of it.
Accountability was externally triggered, not internally enforced.
Reform occurred only after reputational damage became global.
Xavier André Justo, a former employee linked to PetroSaudi, came into possession of internal data after falling out with his employers. History often turns not on pure motives, but on access and timing.
The information he held was authentic and explosive. It revealed the internal mechanics of transactions that would otherwise have remained opaque.
Without this data, allegations surrounding 1MDB would have remained speculative rather than evidential. His disclosures provided the raw material that made denial increasingly untenable.
Clare Rewcastle Brown, through Sarawak Report, demonstrated credibility, persistence, and courage in publishing and verifying this information. Her work involved connecting financial transactions across multiple jurisdictions and continuing publication despite legal threats, intimidation, and political pressure. Journalism does not deliver verdicts but without exposure, there can be no investigation, and without investigation, there can be no justice.
The core transactions linked to 1MDB began as early as 2010–2011. For years, they attracted little sustained scrutiny not because the sums were small, but because the structure was deliberately complex and cross-border.
Oversight institutions were politically constrained, and questioning the scheme carried professional and legal risks. In such an environment, silence is not accidental ,it is engineered.
At a time when most mainstream Malaysian media were constrained by ownership structures, licensing laws, and political pressure, Sarawak Report operated outside domestic censorship.
This external position was crucial. When Sarawak Report and later The Edge began publishing detailed investigations, the public could finally see the scale, intent, and design of the scheme.
Without this exposure, the truth may never have reached daylight.
This case also highlights the importance of international law-enforcement cooperation. Authorities from the United States, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Singapore, the Netherlands, and Barbados played critical roles in supporting Malaysia’s anti-corruption efforts—reinforcing the message that corruption has no safe haven.
A Reminder to Those in Power
This outcome reminds us that justice is not automatic—it is demanded. Institutions, journalists, and citizens each have a role to play. When the rakyat remain vigilant, accountability becomes unavoidable.
Without leaked data, foreign-based investigative journalism, and independent domestic media willing to take risks, this affair might have joined the long list of buried scandals. We therefore thank local and international media voices who refused to look away.
Long before courtrooms delivered verdicts, journalism exposed facts that those in power tried to bury. The presumption of innocence must always be respected courts decide guilt, not public opinion. But leaders do not govern on legal technicalities alone. They govern on trust, and trust is destroyed by secrecy, arrogance, and abuse of power.
To those still shielded by position, delay, or political convenience: do not mistake the absence of conviction for the absence of scrutiny. The rakyat remember. Records exist. History is patient.
The people are watching.
This is not the end of reform, but a warning and a reminder. Impunity thrives only when citizens grow tired. We must not. Accountability must be demanded relentlessly without fear and without compromise.
