KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak told the High Court here that the SRC International Sdn Bhd board of directors (BOD) did not verify matters pertaining to the company with him but took the words of the former CEO, Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil instead.
He denied that Nik Faisal was the link between the company and himself and added that there was no reason for him to direct the BOD through Nik Faisal,
Najib said this was because SRC was only one of the many Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc) companies involved in national interest-related projects at that time.
"I was not in any position to micro-manage any MOF Inc companies and looking at things now, it appears that Nik Faisal may have been playing both sides.
To me, he would present that matters had been decided by the BOD, and to the BOD, he implied that I had directed those matters," said Najib.
"What baffles me is why the other directors of SRC including Tan Sri Ismee Ismail did not bother to verify things with me directly and merely accepted the word of Nik Faisal, especially in relation to the company’s funds," he added.
Najib, 71, was reading his witness statement during the examination-in-chief conducted by his lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee here on Wednesday (Sept 25).
Najib is testifying as a defendant in SRC International’s US$1.18bil civil suit against him and Nik Faisal, who is currently at large.
Najib also told the court that his advice as the Advisor Emeritus was never sought by the BOD except on two occasions.
He said these two occasions were when another SRC former director - Datuk Mohammed Azhar Osman Khairuddin - referred him to letters seeking his views on the National Strategic Coal Initiative and the Trans Sabah Gas Pipeline Project.
"I had minuted my approval and agreement to these projects on the letters from SRC. I understood that my advice was being sought because these were matters of strategic importance to Malaysia.
"It again baffles me how a BOD comprising such qualified and experienced persons could merely accept the word of Nik Faisal 'hook, line, and sinker'. I really doubt whether this actually happened but I’m sure the BOD minutes of meeting and other contemporaneous document would reflect the real events but I have not viewed the same," he said.
Under new management, SRC filed the legal action in May 2021, alleging that Najib had committed breach of trust, abuse of power, misappropriated the company's funds and personally benefited from it.
It named Najib along with its former directors Datuk Suboh Md Yassin, Mohammed Azhar Osman Khairuddin, Nik Faisal, Datuk Che Abdullah @ Rashidi Che Omar, Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi and Ismee in May 2021.
However, later, it removed six names from the suit and retained Najib and Nik Faisal as the first and second defendants.
Additionally, Najib has brought the former named SRC International directors as third-party respondents in the suit.
The company is seeking damages, interests, costs and a court declaration that Najib is responsible for the company’s losses due to his breach of duties and trust, and is demanding that Najib pay back the US$1.18bil in losses that it has suffered.
It is also seeking US$120mil and US$2mil from Najib and Nik Faisal respectively, on account of fraudulent breach of fiduciary duties and breach of trust.
The trial before Justice Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin continues this afternoon.
