Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad told a press conference this morning that the Agong (King) has agreed to issue imprisoned Anwar Ibrahim a full and immediate pardon.
Speaking to reporters, he told them that they will now be going through the due process of obtaining a pardon for his one-time deputy prime minister. He said it would be a “full pardon,” with release to immediate effect.
Anwar was charged with sodomy in 2008 for the second time. The first charge occurred in 1998 under the tenure none other than Mahathir himself prior to his initial retirement from public life.
After an initial acquittal in January 2012, the ruling was overturned, and he was retried. Found guilty in March 2014, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment, and has been in Sungai Buloh Prison since.
The charges have been called “politically motivated” by some.
One reporter asked if Anwar could potentially become a cabinet minister, to which the PM responded he must first become a member of Parliament.
“That might take a long time,” he added.
Happy days for Anwar and his family.
