Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak today told a court that his minute on a letter stating his support for SRC International loan application in 2011 was not tantamount to an order.
Testifying at his criminal trial at the Kuala Lumpur High Court, Najib (photo) said he had no power to order the then CEO of Retirement Fund Incorporated (KWAP), Azian Mohd Noh, to approve the RM3.95 billion application.
"Not at all. As the Finance Minister, I had no power whatsoever to order KWAP to approve any loan like that.
"The power is in the hands of (KWAP's) Investment Panel as stipulated in the Retirement Fund Act 2007, which gives the panel the ultimate power to decide matters that are brought before it.
"Even Azian herself also does not have the power to approve loans for KWAP because as the CEO, she is only an ex-officio member of the Investment Panel who does not have the right to vote (in the panel)," Najib said.
The former Umno president was testifying on the first day of defence case, after he was called to enter his defense by the court on Nov 11 to answer seven criminal charges related to SRC funds.
Earlier during the prosecution's case, Azian had testified against Najib where she told the court that an aide to the then PM and finance minister had handed her the SRC International loan application letter in June 2011.
According to her testimony, the letter dated June 3, 2011 signed by SRC International director Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil also contained a handwritten note by Najib that said "Bersetuju dengan cadangan ini (Agree with this proposal)".
She told the court that while there was no legal compulsion for her to approve the loan, Najib's annotation on the letter had carried a certain amount of influence.
"He is my ultimate boss, so I cannot deny there is a certain amount of influence," she had said on June 10.
However, according to Najib today, such annotation is not something final.
There had been occassions where government officials who disagreed with his decision could change their mind, Najib claimed.
"There had been instances where I had given my agreement, or noted 'bersetuju', and then there were officers who did not support this and appealed to me so I can change my decision.
"Thus, the word 'bersetuju' does not mean it is final and cannot be changed. It is still subjected to scrutiny of officers who sometimes have different views. So, the word 'bersetuju' does not mean it is a carte blanche agreement.
"It does not stop differing views to be aired and considered," he told the court.
Najib disputes evidences adduced by former SRC chairperson
Meanwhile, the court also heard Najib disputing SRC International documents that had been adduced as prosecution evidence through testimony of the company's former chairperson, Ismee Ismail.
He claimed that he had never seen the three sets of Emergency General Meeting (EGM) minutes and Special Shareholder Resolutions before.
"I understand that there was no original copy that had been tendered to the court. I found that there were documents (in the trial) where my signature had been manipulated and forged.
"Looking at the content of these documents, I do not believe that I have seen these documents before or had signed them on behalf of the Finance Minister Incorporated (MOF Inc).
"The matters outlined in them are operational matters that are parts of the responsibility and discretion of the (company's) board of directors. It is not my usual practice to sign documents like this on behalf of the MOF Inc without any resolutions from the board beforehand and proposal from the MOF Inc Division (of the Finance Ministry)," he said.
Najib also expressed his shock over Ismee's testimony in the court where the latter alleged he had used the documents to dictate SRC International board of directors' decisions.
"I was shocked to hear the testimony of Ismee, where his view was contradictory to his experience in several government-linked companies.
"I surely had never signed any documents to direct the board of directors on matters which they have to settle first for the company's interests," Najib says. - Mkini
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