Did SRC's board take 'government' to mean 'PM'?

NAJIB TRIAL | Najib Abdul Razak's defence team clashed with former SRC International chairperson Ismee Ismail (above) over whether the company's board of directors conflated the term "prime minister" with "government".

The war of words between the 39th witness and defence counsel Harvinderjit Singh transpired when the lawyer referred Ismee to Paragraph 22 of his witness statement recorded by the MACC.

Ismee's witness statement had revealed that SRC International CEO Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil was the "link" between the company and its advisor emeritus, which was also then-prime minister Najib.

At the time, Najib was also finance minister and hence the head of Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc), which was ultimately the owner of SRC International.

Paragraph 22 saw Ismee equating the word "government" to "Najib" and that Nik Faisal had often sought instructions from the "government".

During cross-examination by Harvinderjit Singh, which has now entered its sixth day, the lawyer suggested that Najib could not have been the sole person to decide on whether Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP) should grant a second RM2 billion loan to SRC International in 2012.

This occurred when Harvinderjit questioned Ismee over the correspondences between Nik Faisal and MOF Inc in the lead up to KWAP's decision to agree to the loan.

Harvinderjit: Would you agree in regard to confirming the commitment of RM2 billion from KWAP and utilisation of the RM2 billion should be approved by MOF Inc?

Ismee: It should be.

Harvinderjit: On 14 Feb (2012), all the approval from MOF Inc was coming through a department of MOF Inc. This is implied?

Ismee: Yes.

Harvinderjit: Therefore, if Nik Faisal were to say these were decisions by the government, he was suggesting that it was a decision on a governmental level, not by Najib.

Ismee: At that point in time, as far as the (SRC International) directors were concerned, it was a decision by PM (Najib).

The witness, however, agreed that the loan approval process would require input from MOF Inc. 

Harvinderjit (above): That is my point. You made a broad statement in your witness statement. Discussion (involved) Nik Faisal with the government, agreement with Najib... You mentioned Najib, but Nik Faisal was referring to the government.

Ismee: In my state of mind, yes.

Harvinderjit: Was that during the board meeting?

Ismee: Somewhere during and after the board meeting.

Harvinderjit: If he (Nik Faisal) is the link with the prime minister (Najib), why you do not just use the word PM?

Ismee: I used the word PM.

Harvinderjit: Then you cannot say government. When you raised the issue of governance, did you refer to the minutes (of SRC International board meetings)?

Ismee: Yes.

Harvinderjit: Najib is not the government, he is just the prime minister and finance minister.

Ismee: He is prime minister.

Harvinderjit: Nik Faisal used the word "government" in the context of government to government, not one man (Najib). There must be EPU (Economic Planning Unit) dealing with this, the whole machinery.

Government guarantee cannot come about until the cabinet approves it first, and there are many ministers in the cabinet.

The government macro decision represented to you cannot be tied to just the prime minister (Najib).

Ismee: Yes.

Cross-examination of Ismee would resume tomorrow before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.

Harvinderjit told the court that he had a few more questions for Ismee before handing over the cross-examination to lead defence counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah. -Mkini