Still, on Friday, the former leader appeared nonchalant in court, wearing a crisp dark suit – and carrying his trademark patrician air – as he pleaded not guilty.

It is that defiance, along with a concerted charm offensive painting himself as a victim of revenge politics, that has some observers wondering if the new Pakatan Harapan government led by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has written Najib off too quickly.

Instead of heading into the trial with his tail between his legs, Najib, analysts say, appears to be heading into the legal battle of his life with aplomb.

Pakatan Harapan bickering a sign of Malaysia’s new democracy: Asia’s youngest minister, Syed Saddiq

The 93-year-old premier’s key acolytes have brushed off concerns about Najib – describing the attempted image rehabilitation as shallow and ineffective.

Among them is the 26-year-old Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.

“People say he looks unperturbed, the very same thing that people said prior to the elections,” Syed Saddiq told This Week in Asia in a January interview.

He was referring to last May’s vote that saw Mahathir’s coalition deal a shock defeat to Najib’s long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition. Independent observers, however, are far more circumspect.

Political analyst Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani said Najib’s “bossku” (my boss) campaign – in which the ex-premier has painted himself as an everyman Malaysian – was effective, contrary to claims by the likes of Syed Saddiq.

The campaign appeared to spring up in early January, before a key by-election viewed as an early litmus test for the Mahathir government. Ahead of that contest, Najib-leaning social media accounts began circulating the tagline “malu apa bossku?”, or “what’s there to be ashamed of, boss?”

Proof needed before Malaysia investigates China-1MDB reports, Mahathir says

It became viral when Najib posed for pictures seated on an inexpensive Yamaha moped – the two-wheeler of choice of Malaysia’s infamous Mat Rempit (hell riders). And last week, Najib visited the island resort of Langkawi – Mahathir’s ward.

There, his charm offensive involved posing for selfies with supporters (he themed the holiday “Selfie with Datuk Seri Najib”), visiting night markets and jet skiing with his son Ashman.

Such acts have attracted the eye rolls from Pakatan Harapan loyalists, but seem to have endeared Najib with the country’s influential rural Malays, who form the biggest voting bloc.

While Mahathir’s coalition won last May’s polls convincingly, it did not fare as well as expected in rural areas – such as in Najib’s home state of Pahang.

One recent survey of 2,614 ethnic Malays found that some 60 per cent of the community were dissatisfied with the new government as its one-year anniversary nears.

Najib’s “use of ‘bossku’ and colloquial or slang Malay has been very effective in making him more accessible to the masses who are becoming disillusioned with Pakatan Harapan’s unfulfilled promises”, said Asrul Hadi, the Kuala Lumpur-based director of BowerGroupAsia consultancy.

Can a ‘new Malaysia’ emerge while those in power play an old game?

And with the Mahathir cabinet replete with gaffe-prone political greenhorns, veteran politician Najib’s “trolling of ministers has also reverberated with the Malay community”, the analyst said.

Firdaus Abdullah, a pro-Mahathir political blogger, offered an alternative explanation for the phenomenon.

The public relations blitz, according to Abdullah, is being helmed by “professional agencies”.

“They are being nicely funded to do branding … and their timeline was the start or before the start of the trial,” he said.

The blogger dismissed the notion that the campaign was working ahead of the trial. “I think the larger Malaysian populace know what he has done. He isn’t really catching steam,” he said.

Within Pakatan Harapan meanwhile, the likes of lawmaker William Leong say they hope the court case starting Tuesday vindicates the coalition’s efforts to get to the bottom of the 1MDB financial scandal and Najib’s role in it.

The bloc won last May’s electoral contest in part by constantly hammering the then-premier for his role in the scandal – which first became public in 2015.

“Go through the process. We don’t want to be seen as a kangaroo court. Let the process unfold,” Leong told This Week in Asia.

Malaysia’s ECRL: officials flip-flop over future of US$20 billion China-backed project

From the Najib camp, there were fighting words – and accusations that the scales had already been tilted.

“Not ready,” said Lokman Adam, a staunch loyalist of Najib who has frequently acted as his spokesman. He said he expected Najib to be subject to unfair treatment during the trial.

And the late-night visit by anti-corruption officers on Thursday was just one example of the vindictive stance the Mahathir government is taking with Najib, the politician said.

“It was his 32nd wedding anniversary … and in the evening the [anti-corruption] guys arrived. Of course he was unhappy,” Lokman said.

By the time all of Najib’s trials are over – the one beginning on Tuesday is just the first of several trials – that late-night disturbance may prove to be not too severe an ordeal.