Najib Rubbishes Jho Low Interview Throwing Him Under Bus

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1MDB TRIAL | Najib Abdul Razak has dismissed fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho (Jho Low) 2015 interview where the latter threw the ex-premier under the bus over the 1MDB affair.
The ex-finance minister was testifying before the High Court in Putrajaya about Low’s interview with Euromoney business portal titled “Jho Low says it ain’t so: Malaysian tycoon denies role in 1MDB heist of the century”.
Najib was batting off cross-examination by deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam over Low disclaiming responsibility over alleged financial wrongdoing at 1MDB.
Mustaffa: In the Euromoney article, Low blamed the shareholder (of 1MDB via the Minister of Finance Incorporated or MOF) namely Datuk Seri (Najib). I put to you that based on this article, Low had thrown you under the bus.
Najib: I do not agree. I abide by corporate governance. It is clear that shareholders only later (in the decision-making process of 1MDB). What is important is the (1MDB) board and its management.
The accused explained that his role as then shareholder in 1MDB was part of his official duty and that the ultimate decision-maker ultimately lay with the board of directors followed by management.
Mustaffa was reading out Low’s quotes from the article, where the businessperson expressed frustration at the attacks he was getting in 2015.
The DPP read out a quote where Low said “Guys, it’s very simple, there’s a board, who’s the shareholder?”
When Mustaffa asked whether anyone under the then-prime minister informed him about the article, Najib replied nobody brought it to his attention.
‘Ostentatious lifestyle’
Yesterday during the RM2.27 billion 1MDB abuse of power and money laundering trial against him, Najib testified he confronted Low over the businessperson’s ostentatious lifestyle in 2015.
The accused claimed that he had no knowledge of wrongdoing at 1MDB and that all embezzlement there was solely masterminded by Low and members of its management.
Najib had previously testified that while Low showed close connections with officials in the Middle East among other places, the ex-premier claimed he was ultimately duped by the businessperson, who allegedly went on to loot 1MDB and on the lam.
During further grilling today by Mustaffa, Najib testified that he had some doubts about Low during the accused’s administration.
Najib: Yes, I had my doubts, but there was no concrete evidence (back in 2015 when the Euromoney article was published).
Mustaffa: You could have taken action (against Low).
Najib: Our (investigation) agency was investigating this.
Mustaffa: No action was taken.
Najib: I waited for reports from our agency.
When the DPP said Najib should have kept his distance from Low back then despite Malaysian investigation agencies looking into the issue, Najib disagreed.
Najib also disagreed with Mustaffa's contention that Low was a mirror image of the accused.
At the start of the trial in 2019, the late deputy public prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram described Low as a mirror image of Najib, whereby the fugitive allegedly took actions at 1MDB at the behest of the former premier.
When Mustaffa cross-examined Najib over The Edge chairperson Tong Kooi Ong's attempt to warn the then premier in 2015 about wrongdoing at 1MDB, the accused said he recalled the businessperson discussing something about the problem with the business model of 1MDB.
Najib said he does not recall whether Tong - during a visit to the former prime minister’s house in Langgak Duta in Kuala Lumpur in March that year - had raised the issue of Low being involved in embezzlement at the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund.
The accused disagreed with the DPP’s contention that he had asked Tong to leave the house, claiming he merely opened the front door out of “adab” (courtesy) as he always did when people from rural areas came to visit him.
“I did not ask him (Tong) to leave,” Najib testified.
‘No fair investigation, hence no fair trial’
Meanwhile, during cross-examination by deputy public prosecutor Kamal Baharin Omar, Najib claimed that he did not receive a fair trial in the 1MDB graft case.
The accused claimed that it was because MACC investigators did not show him the documents linked to the case and that he was not allowed to fully explain his side of the story.
Najib claimed that the criminal charges against him were already prepared a month before he was brought to court on Sept 20, 2018.
“Why were the proposed charges drafted (earlier) before I was even charged (in court)? It is unprecedented in the annals of legal history. A month is a very, very long time, it meant the MACC had already formulated to charge me already. 
“Whatever I said (to MACC during the investigation) was immaterial, that is the implication. This is a serious transgression of my rights and the (Federal) Constitution,” Najib lamented.
The ex-premier then cited sitting Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s recent comments that some criminal cases initiated in 2018 during the then administration under Dr Mahathir Mohamad were done in a hurry and with enmity.
“I link this (1MDB case) with what the prime minister (Anwar) said recently, where after the 18th general election, there were a lot of charges the prosecution made that were flawed and done with enmity and in a hurry.
“That is a very serious coming from a head of government you see, a very serious statement, as though it is related to what I mentioned,  that is very clear evidence that if the charges were sent out a month before I gave my statement (to MACC), what does it say,” Najib said, claiming that the case against him since 2018 was a form of political persecution.
The trial resumes on Monday next week.
Six years and still going
On Oct 30 last year, Najib was ordered to defend himself against four abuse of power and 21 money laundering charges involving RM2.27 billion from 1MDB.
Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah ruled that the prosecution succeeded in establishing a prima facie (answerable) case against Najib over the Minister of Finance Incorporated’s (MOF Inc) wholly owned company.
The judge ruled that Najib had to answer the charges due to the strength of 50 witness testimonies in the prosecution stage of proceedings that lasted six years since the trial began in 2019. The accused was first charged in 2018.
Since the prima facie ruling, Najib has been testifying in his defence against the 1MDB criminal charges.
The accused maintained that he had no knowledge of wrongdoing at 1MDB and that Low and management members masterminded the embezzlement at the fund.
He is also relying on the defence that he was led to believe he would receive a donation from Arab royalty over his contribution to the Islamic world.
Lawyer Tania Scivetti acted for Najib. - Mkini

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