Saifuddin reiterated that only prisoners who are senior citizens, pregnant or disabled, and serving a jail sentence of up to four years, would be eligible for home detention.

“Najib is not included in that list,” he said, according to Malaysiakini.

On Saturday, Saifuddin announced that Putrajaya had agreed in principle to implement home detentions for inmates with jail terms of four years or less.

He said the home ministry was looking into how to implement the initiative based on the relevant provisions in the law.

In response, reform group Projek Sama urged Putrajaya to table a white paper on the matter to draw up a transparent and consistent process when it comes to determining prisoners’ eligibility for house arrest.

It said this would ensure the initiative would not be abused to benefit criminals who may be deemed “privileged or powerful”.

In a statement, Projek Sama also warned the government against allowing Najib to be granted home detention.

On Feb 2, the Federal Territories Pardons Board announced a reduction of Najib’s prison sentence in the SRC International case from 12 years to six.

His fine was also reduced from RM210 million to RM50 million, but with an additional year added to the sentence if he failed to pay the amount.

The former Pekan MP’s legal team later said they would send a fresh application for a full pardon for Najib.