KUALA LUMPUR: Former 1MDB chief executive officer Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi told the High Court that he was instructed to insulate Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Low Taek Jho from the company and its subsidiary SRC International Sdn Bhd before interviews with Malaysian investigators.
Shahrol said he was given “talking points” by the fugitive financier, also known as Jho Low, ahead of his interviews with Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and police.
He said the coaching occurred before and after the PAC meetings in 2010 and 2015.
Shahrol said this while under examination-in-chief conducted by lead prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram yesterday.
He said the main instruction was to downplay Najib’s and Jho Low’s involvement in 1MDB’s decision-making.
Shahrol said the second theme of the talking points was that any accusations against Najib were merely political attacks.
Shahrol revealed that in 2010, Jho Low had arranged for him to meet with PAC members from Barisan Nasional, including former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.
These members would brief him on the kinds of questions that would be posed by the PAC.
He said in the second PAC meeting in 2015, he had received instructions from Arul Kanda Kandasamy – who had then replaced him as 1MDB chief executive officer – to skip the interview by “hightailing it out of town”.
The duo flew to Singapore for the day, which Shahrol claims was in line with Arul’s instructions, which came from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Before and after the meetings with the PAC, he attended briefings at the home of Datuk Seri Ahmad Farid Ridzuan, who was then in charge of Najib’s image branding. He attended around 20 such briefings there.
After one PAC meeting, Shahrol said he met then PAC chairman Datuk Seri Hasan Arifin, who disclosed what would be going into the report.
Shahrol said he was given “talking points” by the fugitive financier, also known as Jho Low, ahead of his interviews with Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and police.
He said the coaching occurred before and after the PAC meetings in 2010 and 2015.
Shahrol said this while under examination-in-chief conducted by lead prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram yesterday.
He said the main instruction was to downplay Najib’s and Jho Low’s involvement in 1MDB’s decision-making.
Shahrol said the second theme of the talking points was that any accusations against Najib were merely political attacks.
Shahrol revealed that in 2010, Jho Low had arranged for him to meet with PAC members from Barisan Nasional, including former minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.
These members would brief him on the kinds of questions that would be posed by the PAC.
He said in the second PAC meeting in 2015, he had received instructions from Arul Kanda Kandasamy – who had then replaced him as 1MDB chief executive officer – to skip the interview by “hightailing it out of town”.
The duo flew to Singapore for the day, which Shahrol claims was in line with Arul’s instructions, which came from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Before and after the meetings with the PAC, he attended briefings at the home of Datuk Seri Ahmad Farid Ridzuan, who was then in charge of Najib’s image branding. He attended around 20 such briefings there.
After one PAC meeting, Shahrol said he met then PAC chairman Datuk Seri Hasan Arifin, who disclosed what would be going into the report.
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