The Malaysian Insight

NAJIB Razak will be cross-examined today by ad hoc deputy public prosecutor V. Sithambaram, who is expected to touch on the roles of SRC International executives mentioned in the former prime minister’s witness statement.

Also mentioned in the witness statement was the role of Low Taek Jho, commonly known as Jho Low. Najib said Low conspired with executives and bankers to defraud the entity.

Sithambaram, a seasoned criminal lawyer, will refute that and put forward the prosecution’s argument that Najib acted in tandem with them.

Yesterday, Najib maintained that signatures on documents relating to SRC International and banking transactions, which were tendered as evidence against him, were forged.

Under cross-examination, the Pekan MP also said he will lodge a police report after a handwriting expert testifies that the signatures were forged.

Sithambaram suggested that Najib’s claim of forgery was an “after thought” and only surfaced during the defence stage of the trial, which the latter denied.

He was also cross-examined on a RM40 million transaction from SRC International to its corporate social responsibility partner Ihsan Perdana Sdn Bhd in 2014.

On why SRC International’s management didn’t object to the transactions involving millions, Najib said he was not involved in operational matters as he was busy administering the country.

Najib also maintained that he was under the impression that the money spent, including on political activities, was a donation from the Saudi Arabian royalty.

The 66-year-old’s charges in the SRC International trial are linked to RM4 billion in loans issued to the entity in 2011 and 2012, for which he is accused of receiving RM42 million in 2014 and 2015.

The Malaysian Insight brings you today’s proceedings, on the sixth day of the defence stage in the trial, live:

11.28am: Court is adjourned.

11.25am: Court is in session.

Sithambaram says he is feeling unwell and requests that the trial be adjourned to next year.

Lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah does not object.

Nazlan allows the request and rules that the trial will resume on 9am, January 6.

10.56am: Court is in recess.

10.45am: Sithambaram: You are managing the country, you are the finance minister and you say you issue cheques with “a sense” (of the balance)?

Najib: There was substantial money in the account.

Sithambaram: Your sense cannot be correct. Now we are here… your case, you state it was Arab funds. But we know the money was used up by September or October (2014).

I am putting it to you that you fully took charge of your finances and your accounts.

Najib: I disagree.

Sithambaram: You are a careful man with government funds?

Najib: Yes, I am careful.

Sithambaram: Personal funds.

Najib: I don’t pay too much attention.

Sithambaram: I don’t mean to be disrespectful. When I read that the police carried out some sort of raid a year ago, you complained that some chocolates were missing from your fridge. You were that precise?

Najib: My daughter complained.

Sithambaram: You gave a press conference on that?

Najib: It was not my chocolate.

Sithambaram: I find it difficult that (being) prime minister and finance minister, (you are) quite clueless (about your) accounts and went about with just a “sense”.

Najib: Even for my personal accounts… I just sign cheques.

Sithambaram: Unfortunately the person you checked with, Datuk Azlin and Nik Faisal, it’s “no more”.

You have complete knowledge of the credit, debit transactions in your account and you knew the RM42 million was indeed credited into your account.

Najib: I disagree.

Sithambaram: Your evidence of having no knowledge in your account is patently false.

Najib: I disagree.

10.34am: Sithambaram: In fact, looking at your account, you issued hundreds of cheques for your various causes.

Najib says he only received statements of account.

Sithambaram: In short you agree with me, apart from the Arab donations, you cannot tell the date or the month or the year it was received?

Najib: Yes.

Sithambaram: Apart from the Arab donations, you are not aware of any other money paid into your account?

Najib: Yes.

Sithambaram: So each time you issued a cheque, you actually won’t know if it could bounce because you don’t know the balance?

Najib: Yes.

Sithambaram: So you would check with Nik Faisal (former SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil)?

Najib: No, but I check with Azlin (late principal private secretary Azlin Alias).

Azlin would confirm. I believe he consulted Nik Faisal.

Sithambaram: So your case you asked Azlin for the balance, he would have to go check with Nik Faisal?

Najib: Yes.

Najib says he only checks once in a while.

“I have a sense there was enough balance.”

Najib says he never asked for the specific balance.

Sithambaram: You ask for an issuance of cheque. Don’t you find it strange that the bank doesn’t tell you the balance? You have a sense that you have the money and not precisely how much money?

I am putting to you that you knew the money that is coming in and going out. You know the balance.

Najib: I disagree.

10.24am: Sithambaram asks Najib why Article 117 was added to SRC International’s company constitution.

Sithambaram: I’m trying to understand, if from inception you have appointed a board that never done anything you required, why on earth ask for this power?

If I heard you correctly, even after this amendment was passed, they still did not refer anything to you, is that correct?

Najib: I disagree.

I’m not the only person running SRC International. You are saying, I’m running it as my own fiefdom, which I didn’t.

Sithambaram: I’m putting it to you that you are the only person.

10.09am: However, Najib refutes his earlier statement when cross-examined by Attorney-General Tommy Thomas.

Najib says his signatures tendered to court needs to be verified.

Sithambaram: I am hereby showing what was said, you have said firstly that you have never signed any shareholder minutes. Later on in the cross-examination, when P510 was shown, you confirmed that this was a document you signed.

Najib: Subject to the comparison to the original document…

Sithambaram: Datuk Seri when you made the admission, you were looking at a photocopy and you confirmed in court. You agree or disagree?

Najib: I disagree.

Sithambaram: That’s fine.

Najib: If it’s not original, you can cut and paste…

Sithambaram: You can have all sorts of theories.

Najib: I put it to you that you did, to a specific question asked by the AG (attorney-general), confirm that P510 was signed by you.

Sithambaram: Yes, but subject to (comparison with) the original document.

Sithambaram: I am putting it to you that your refusal to acknowledge that you signed P510 (of the said minutes) and all the other minutes of the shareholders meeting because you want to distance yourself from the fact that you used this minutes of the shareholder to control the directors. I put it to you.

Najib: I disagree.

9.57am: Sithambaram asks Najib to confirm that he signed a shareholders minutes dated April 23, 2012.

Sithambaram, referring to Najib’s witness statement, asks him to confirm that he had never signed any shareholder minutes apart from this one.

Najib agrees.

9.56am: Sithambaram addresses the court and requests that the hearing end at lunch.

He says he is feeling ill and down with a fever.

Presiding judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali allows the request.

Sithambaram continues his cross-examination.

9.50pm: Court is in session. Najib takes the stand. – December 19, 2019.