KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Najib Razak has denied claims that 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and its joint ventures were designed to serve his personal interests or those of Umno, the High Court here heard.
Najib, 71, strongly disagreed with testimony by former 1MDB chief executive officer (CEO) Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman, who said fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, also known as Jho Low, had told him that the funds from 1MDB were meant for Najib and Umno.
Hazem, the 10th prosecution witness, testified on Sept 14, 2020.
In his witness statement on Tuesday (Dec 10), Najib pointed a finger back at Hazem and told the court the problem with 1MDB was the systemic failure in the execution of decisions at managerial level which began from the time the company was under the former CEO Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi up until Hazem's tenure.
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"I recall his (Hazem) testimony in court where he admitted to being placed in the management to carry out Jho Low's instruction, he even admitted specifically that with regard to the US$3bil raised for 1MDB Global Investment Ltd, he was placed there as a director just to sign every document brought before him upon the instruction of Jho Low, and his proxies Jasmine Loo (former 1MDB general counsel) and Terrence Geh (former 1MDB deputy chief financial officer)," Najib said.
The former prime minister said it was incredible that the assertion made by Hazem could be accorded any credibility at all as the former CEO admitted that he had to follow the instructions of Jho Low and his proxies.
"Particularly, when he admitted to acting out of defiance of a joint venture agreement and for months kept the remittances of the same funds into three unsanctioned fiduciary funds from the knowledge of the 1MDB board, and misled (them) to believe that the funds were safely deposited with UBS Bank.
"I suspect this assertion was only concocted later to salvage any credibility left in him, given his admissions to forgery, multiple acts of criminal breach of trust, and breach of fiduciary duties as a director," Najib added.
He also shot down another claim by Hazem, who testified that he was acting on the instructions of Najib's former principal private secretary, the late Datuk Azlin Alias, who died in a helicopter crash.
"I think that assertion is most despicable and is a ploy to downplay his complicity and participation in Jho Low’s scheme.
"At any rate, Allahyarham Azlin is no longer with us to defend himself but that does not detract from the fact that he (Hazem) still owes a duty to the company and his actions made him an accomplice to Jho Low," he said.
On Oct 30, Najib was ordered by the High Court to enter his defence on four counts of using his position to obtain RM2.28bil gratification from 1MDB's funds and 21 counts of money laundering involving the same amount.
The trial continues before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
