Witness: Najib told me to see that sensitive info involving Jho Low was excluded from 1MDB audit report

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s former principal private secretary told the High Court that the former premier directed him to instruct the National Audit Department (NAD) to exclude sensitive matters involving businessman Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low, from the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) audit report.

Tan Sri Shukry Mohd Salleh, 67, testified that Najib had given him the instruction during a meeting at the latter’s office on Feb 26, 2016.

This instruction came two days after a coordination meeting, attended by several agencies, was chaired by former chief secretary to the government Tan Sri Ali Hamsa and held at the behest of Najib on Feb 24, 2016.

“Najib had said (on Feb 26), ‘Shukry, you tell audit so that sensitive and irrelevant issues such as Jho Low in 1MDB are not included in the report. If the matter reaches the Opposition, it could be turned into an issue’,” Shukry told the court here on Thursday (Sept 30).

The witness said he then contacted NAD’s former audit director Saadatul Nafisah Bashir Ahmad and relayed Najib’s instructions.

Shukry, the 11th prosecution witness, was reading his witness statement at the 1MDB audit trial involving Najib and former 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy.

The witness said Najib had directed him earlier in February 2016 to obtain the 1MDB audit report from the NAD as it had to be checked before it was published.

“This was because he was concerned that the report contained nonsense,” he added.

Shukry also testified that prior to the Feb 26 meeting with Najib, he had met former auditor-general Tan Sri Ambrin Buang and Ali at Ali’s office on Feb 23.

In the meeting, Ali informed Shukry and Ambrin that he had arranged for the coordination meeting with representatives from the NAD, 1MDB, the Treasury and Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) on Feb 24.

“In the meeting, I informed Ali and Ambrin that 1MDB had become a crisis that needed to be managed immediately. What I meant was that 1MDB had attracted attention from inside and outside the country.

“Before meeting Ambrin, Ali and I had met separately with Arul Kanda, who explained 1MDB’s financial issues,” he said during an examination-in-chief by DPP Nadia Zulkefli.

Shukry, who ended his contract as principal private secretary on Sept 30, 2016, also told the court that he attended the Feb 24 coordination meeting with Najib’s approval.

Besides Shukry, the meeting was attended by Arul Kanda (1MDB), Ambrin and Saadatul Nafisah (NAD), Datuk Seri Mohmad Isa Hussain and Asri Hamidin@ Hamidon (Treasury), Datuk Dzulkifli Ahmad (AGC) and Ali’s senior private secretary Datuk Norazman Ayob.

According to Shukry, Ali informed the attendees that the meeting was called to coordinate several issues that Najib was dissatisfied with in the 1MDB audit report.

The meeting also discussed two versions of 1MDB financial statements for the year 2014.

“I had said that this could affect the confidence of foreign parties in our country. If a huge company under the government like 1MDB could be manipulated, it could have implications on investment sentiments,” the witness said.

Shukry also said that Ali then directed Mohmad Isa to lodge a police report over the two versions of the 1MDB financial statements and Ambrin agreed to drop the issue from the audit report on 1MDB.

After Shukry was done reading his witness statement, the court replayed an audio recording of the Feb 24 1MDB audit report coordination meeting.

The audio recording lasted two hours and 45 minutes.

To a question by DPP Ahmad Akram Gharib, Shukry confirmed that it was his voice heard in the recording.

Najib, 68, is accused of abusing his position to order amendments to the 1MDB final audit report to avoid any action being taken against him while Arul Kanda is accused of abetting Najib in making the amendments.

Both men were charged under Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, which provides a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine of no less than five times the amount of gratification or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.

The hearing resumes before Justice Mohamed Zaini Mazlan on Oct 20.