Recording of 1MDB audit meeting legal, former A-G tells Najib trial

Former auditor-general Ambrin Buang.

KUALA LUMPUR: Audit Department director Nor Salwani Muhammad did not run foul of any law when she recorded proceedings of a meeting which discussed amendments to the 1MDB audit report, her former boss Ambrin Buang told the High Court.

The former auditor-general said Nor Salwani was part of a group attending the meeting on Feb 24, 2016, but she was asked to leave.

“She abruptly left due to space constraints but she was there to record the proceeding,” Amrin said during examination by ad-hoc prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram.

Sri Ram: Did a group of you from the National Audit Department (NAD) attend a meeting that included Nor Salwani on Feb 24, 2016?

Ambrin: Yes, she was a coordinator and was to take down notes but she was asked to leave due to space limitations.

Sri Ram: We have in evidence that she placed a recorder in the pencil box of her superior. Is that a breach?

Ambrin: No, if she had been present in the room, she would have recorded it. Anyway, it is for internal use.

Last week, Nor Salwani said she had placed the recorder inside the pencil case belonging to former audit performance director Saadatul Nafisah Bashir Ahmad as she hastily left the meeting room.

That meeting was called and chaired by former chief secretary to the government Ali Hamsa at the behest of former prime minister Najib Razak.

Nor Salwani had also said she later transferred the recording to a hard disk and a thumb drive.

The original recording was deleted as the device belonged to the government. This, she had said, was to prevent any leak of information.

“The audit team was shocked after going through the recording later,” she had said, adding that Ambrin also looked upset after the meeting.

The meeting agreed to remove four things from the audit report, including the two conflicting financial statements and mention of fugitive financier Low Taek Jho or Jho Low’ presence at a 1MDB meeting despite him having no official position in the company.

Ambrin in his witness statement said he had called all 1MDB board of directors, including its chairman Mohd Bakke Salleh, for an interview.

“Bakke confirmed that Jho Low was present at a board meeting on Sept 26, 2009, when approval was given to issue a RM5 billion Islamic bond,” he said.

Ambrin said he later called Bakke’s successor Lodin Wok Kamaruddin and its ex-CEO and president Arul Kanda Kandasamy to produce the minutes of board meetings but there was no proof, from the minutes, that Jho Low had been present.

“Jho Low’ attendance was removed from the audit report so as to stop Public Accounts Committee (PAC) members forming an opinion that he had influence over the directors to approve the issuance of the bond,” he said.

Ambrin said he was very disappointed sometime in February 2016 because he had to entertain a request to amend the audit report that was to be presented to the PAC that same month.

Sometime in early March, he said the report was printed and 25 copies were distributed to Najib, Ali, PAC members, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), police and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).

“Although certain controversial paragraphs were not in the amended report, the NAD had reported them to the MACC, police and BNM,” he said.

Ambrin said the audit report which was presented to the PAC on March 4 and 7, 2016, also contained evidence of criminal wrongdoing that had taken place in 1MDB.

In the dock is Najib who is accused of using his position to obtain immunity from legal action in relation to allegations that he tampered with the 1MDB audit report between Feb 22 and 26, 2016.

The alleged offence took place at the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya.

Arul Kanda is charged with abetting him.

Hearing before trial judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan continues. - FMT