KUALA LUMPUR: Former 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) chief executive officer Arul Kanda Kandasamy (pix) had advised the members of the Board of Directors (BOD) not to speak to the media regarding reports that were coming out about 1MDB in 2015, the High Court was told today.
Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi, 49, who was also former CEO of 1MDB before Arul Kanda, said this when replying to an additional question from senior deputy public prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram on the 14th day of the former premier’s 1MDB trial.
Sri Ram: What were the media reports about?
Shahrol Azral: If I remember correctly they were focused on first US$700 million that were transferred by me to Good Star Ltd, where Jho Low was the ultimate beneficiary of that company.
Sri Ram: Did the BOD members speak to the media?
“I don’t recall any instance when any member of the board spoke publicly. The questions would have come from the National Audit Department, the Public Accounts Committee, as well as any party within the government only,“ he added.
Shahrol Azral was appointed as the CEO of 1MDB on March 23, 2009, while Arul Kanda was appointed in 2015.
Earlier, the witness also said that Low Taek Jho or Jho Low gave him talking points about 1MDB even after he stepped down as CEO.
“I received emails and BlackBerry Messenger chats of talking points from Jho Low on how to respond to questions about 1MDB in 2015, after I had left the fund. They include details of PSI’s collaboration, from how PSI (PetroSaudi International Ltd) was formed, PSI’s link to King Abdullah to the termination of the Murabahah financing agreement,“ he said.
To another question whether the witness recalled any topic of 1MDB that the accused told to the public generally, the witness said he could not recall whether Najib had spoken about Saudi government.
“He might have touched about haj quota,“ he said.
Najib, 66, faces four charges of using his position to obtain bribes totalling RM2.3 billion in the 1MDB fund and 21 charges of money laundering involving the same amount.
The Pekan Member of Parliament allegedly perpetrated the offence at the AmIslamic Bank Berhad Branch, Jalan Raja Chulan, Bukit Ceylon here between Feb 24, 2011 and Dec 19, 2014 while for all charges of money laundering was between March 22, 2013 and Aug 30, 2013, at the same place.
The hearing before Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues. — Bernama
