KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 7 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today he did not sign any official documents when he had been the finance minister to authorise SRC International Sdn Bhd to use its capital for foreign investments in the energy sector.
Najib, who is currently on trial for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International and testifying in his own defence, said this during cross-examination by ad hoc prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaram.
Sithambaram asked Najib about his alleged signatures in a shareholder’s resolution that enabled the former 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) unit to invest overseas RM3.6 billion from its two loans obtained from the Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP).
Sithambaram: As far as what happened, the board had not passed any resolutions that would require shareholder minutes?
Najib: It appears so.
Sithambaram: It appears so, right. Datuk Seri, when you did not receive any board resolution or director’s circular resolution (DCR), that would mean that from 2011 to 2018, using your own words, no macro or major decisions were made by the single shareholder of SRC which is Minister of Finance Incorporated (MoF Inc).
Najib: Shareholders can only decide when it goes through the board.
Sithambaram: Now looking at the flip side of it, when you did not receive any more resolution or DCR, would this mean that from 2011 to 2018, which was the year you left office, that there were no major decisions that required the minutes from you on behalf of MoF Inc, the single shareholder? That is a natural consequence.
Najib: Yes.
Najib also claimed the SRC International’s board never consulted him about investing most of its RM4 billion capital abroad.
He also disagreed that he had issued the shareholder resolution that permitted SRC International to invest overseas RM3.6 billion from its two loans it obtained from Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP).
This is despite Najib agreeing that SRC’s chief executive then, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil, had informed him about the RM3.6 billion investment being carried out by the board, as stated in his witness statement.
Sithambaram: In your witness statement, you were informed by Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil that this investment of RM3.6 billion had been carried out by the board?
Najib: If I said so in the witness statement, yes.
Sithambaram: Following through that, it would only mean that you must have issued a shareholder resolution as it was shown to you?
Najib: Not necessarily.
Najib also said he was “surprised at first”, when asked whether he was “shocked” that most of the RM4 billion loan to SRC International were transferred to foreign banks.
Sithambaram: When you were told that huge investments were taking place overseas, did you express shock that MoF Inc and as the single shareholder had not been informed of these transactions involving almost the whole capital of SRC?
Najib: I was surprised at first.
Sithambaram: If you’re surprised you would enquire from the board of directors how is it that they send overseas a substantial funds of capital without referring to MoF Inc did you enquire?
Najib: No I did not enquire. The board of directors have to be responsible.
Sithambaram, who seemed annoyed over the response, then asked whether the fact that RM3.6 billion had went into foreign banks and “that alarm bells went ringing but Najib did nothing”.
Sithambaram: You must do your job, RM4 billion was taken and nothing was done. Alarm bells were ringing but you did nothing.
Najib: I disagree.
Sithambaram: In the Westminster model, if something like this happens to the Finance Ministry, the minister will resign. He won’t say the MoF Inc failed to inform me.
The Westminster model is a democratic parliamentary system of governance that is based on the system used in the United Kingdom and used by several former and current Commonwealth nations including Malaysia.
Najib: I disagree. I have a lot to say about this, I don’t want to go into it right now.
Sithambaram: I am saying that in an ideal situation, you have to take responsibility.
Najib: So if an aeroplane goes missing the minister of transport must resign? Ridiculous.
Najib then said RM31 billion was lost in the foreign exchange market, referring to the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) held to look into RM31.5 million in forex losses between 1991 and 1994.
Sithambaram then interrupted Najib, telling him to stop making political statements in court.
As both men went back and forth, presiding High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali told Sithambaram to move on to another topic.
Najib is defending himself against seven charges related to SRC International after the judge previously ruled that the prosecution has successfully shown prima facie.
Three are for criminal breach of trust over a total RM42 million of SRC International funds while entrusted with its control as the prime minister and finance minister then, three more are for laundering the RM42 million, and the last is for abusing the same positions for self-gratification of the same sum.
