Islamic singer and songwriter Muhammad Yasin Sulaiman has recalled former prime minister Najib Razak as a “gentleman” during the time they crossed paths at Kajang Prison.
Yasin, 50, said he had never met Najib before being imprisoned, but got to know him through various events held at the prison.
Speaking on the Dark Room Sessions podcast, Yasin said he was often invited to perform at prison events, while Najib would also attend some occasions and dine with guests. They would sometimes sit at the same table with the prison director, giving Yasin the opportunity to speak with Najib and get to know him better.
“After meeting him personally, I found that he was a gentleman. He was caring and soft-spoken,” Yasin said. He added that Najib had also asked about his case several times and appeared interested in what he was going through.
Yasin did not expect 30-year sentence
Yasin said he was initially confident he would be able to return home after the Petaling Jaya Sessions Court acquitted him of three drug charges in November 2023. However, the Shah Alam High Court later overturned the acquittal in August 2024 and sentenced him to life imprisonment and 16 strokes of the cane.
“I never expected the sentence to be that heavy. Suddenly, the judge sentenced me to 30 years and 16 strokes of the cane,” he said.
The Court of Appeal subsequently allowed his appeal in April 2025, acquitting and discharging him while maintaining an order for him to be placed at Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta in Perak.
Yasin was finally allowed to return home on Sept 2 after spending more than four years in prison and at the psychiatric hospital. His original charges involved possession of 193.7g of cannabis, cultivating 17 cannabis plants and self-administration of a dangerous drug.
Crowd funding launch
As of September 21, 2026, the Tabung Solidariti Najib Razak (Najib Razak Solidarity Fund) has successfully raised over RM1 million within less than 24 hours of its launch. Organized by UMNO to assist former Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak in paying his conditional RM50 million royal pardon fine, the crowdfunding campaign experienced a rapid influx of donations immediately after opening on Friday, September 18.
According to updates shared by UMNO Secretary-General Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, the initiative brought in RM165,645 in its first hour and ballooned to RM634,562 within three hours, largely driven by small public contributions ranging from RM10 to RM50. While the fund has quickly crossed the RM1 million milestone, it still faces a substantial gap to meet the full RM50 million required for Najib to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest until August 2028.
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