I'm not Najib's puppet, former SRC director says

 

Ex-SRC International Sdn Bhd director Ismee Ismail rubbished allegations that he was a puppet of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.

During today’s Kuala Lumpur High Court hearing of the Minister of Finance Incorporated (MOF Inc) company’s US$1.18 billion (RM5.54 billion) lawsuit against Najib, Ismee (above) testified that he does not even have the ex-finance minister’s handphone number.

Ismee, who is a third party the court allowed Najib to bring into the civil action to fully or partly reimburse the ex-premier in the event that SRC wins the lawsuit, was replying during cross-examination by the ex-finance minister’s counsel Harvinderjit Singh.

Ismee, 59, said he never met Najib to discuss SRC during his tenure there from 2011 to 2014.

Harvinderjit: Whatever he (Najib) told you, you did not question it. You just followed, and this was the case in SRC?

Ismee: Yes and no.

Harvinderjit: Do you have his (Najib’s) personal phone number?

Ismee: No.

Upon further grilling by Harvinderjit, Ismee reiterated that he is not Najib’s puppet.

Misappropriation of loans

SRC’s present civil action against Najib is linked to the alleged misappropriation of part of RM4 billion in loans (RM3.6 billion or US$1.18 billion in foreign exchange rates between 2011 and 2012) that the company received from Retirement Fund Incorporated (Kwap) between 2011 and 2012.

Kwap is a statutory body under the Finance Ministry.

Najib, who was also former adviser emeritus of SRC, is serving a six-year jail sentence and fined RM50 million in a separate criminal court case involving RM42 million of funds from the company.

Ismee was not only a prosecution witness in the RM42 million SRC corruption trial against Najib but was also relied on by prosecutors to testify against the ex-premier in the ongoing RM2.27 billion 1MDB power abuse and money laundering trial against the ex-finance minister.

According to Ismee’s written witness statement tendered in the civil court for SRC’s suit, Ismee disagreed with Najib’s contention that the latter has no power over the MOF Inc company.

“The first defendant’s (Najib) contention is not accurate and not true based on what had actually transpired,” Ismee told civil court judge Ahmad Fairuz Zainol Abidin.

The trial before Fairuz resumes tomorrow.

Under its new management, SRC filed the suit in May 2021, alleging that Najib, as adviser emeritus of the plaintiff, had committed breach of trust and abuse of power, personally benefited from the company’s funds, and misappropriated billions of ringgit.

SRC is also seeking a court declaration that Najib is responsible for its losses due to a purported breach of duties and trust, and for the ex-premier to repay RM42 million.

The plaintiff is also seeking a court order for Najib to be made accountable for the former’s US$1.18 billion loss, as well as repay an amount of US$120 million of its funds that allegedly flowed into the former premier’s bank account. - Mkini