Witness Jho Low Said He Could Get Pm To Bulldoze Usd6b Guarantee Letter

---

Former 1MDB chief executive officer Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi told the Kuala Lumpur High Court that fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho claimed he could get then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak to bulldoze a USD6 billion guarantee letter in 2013
Testifying during Najib's RM2.28 billion 1MDB graft trial today, Shahrol said Low had asked that 1MDB, through Goldman Sachs, draft the "letter of comfort" and send it to the Finance Ministry after which he could get it to proceed
The letter of comfort was for a USD6 billion government guarantee for a joint venture between 1MDB and Aabar Investment PJS Ltd (BVI) through which 1MDB would commit USD3 billion while Aabar would also commit USD3 billion
However, the deal was actually with the British Virgin Islands-based Aabar which was masquerading as a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC). In the end, Aabar BVI did not deliver on its USD3 billion commitment
The letter was meant to convince financiers so that the joint-venture entities were able to raise funds
The deal was used as a premise to raise a USD3 billion bond for 1MDB, the third one arranged by Goldman Sachs, of which a substantial sum was later misappropriated
"This was in the talking points by Jho Low. It had to be done quickly. Draft the comfort letter and he would get the Finance Ministry and prime minister to bulldoze it through," Shahrol said while under cross-examination by defence counsel Wan Aizuddin Wan Mohammed
Shahrol said Low, referred to by most as "Jho", conveyed that it was essential to rush the process based on the premise that a delegation from Abu Dhabi would be visiting Malaysia soon
Wan Aizuddin: It tallies with your letter to the prime minister that this needs to be done before the official visit
Shahrol: Yes
Wan Aizuddin: Are you saying someone from Goldman Sachs or even Jho Low has been dealing with the Finance Ministry staff, including this (ministry official) Siti Zawiyah who prepared the internal memo
Shahrol: I have no direct knowledge. This draft comfort letter looks like it came from Goldman Sachs
Wan Aizuddin: The need for this letter of comfort was not bulldozed by the Finance Ministry but by Goldman Sachs
Shahrol: Disagree. As Goldman Sachs would not have influence over the internal memo, the instruction to the secretary-general of the treasury, to the legal department, these happened in two days. I don't think Goldman Sachs has that kind of control over the Finance Ministry
The internal memo was on proceeding with the "letter of comfort" for the joint-venture after Shahrol had written to Najib on the matter
Wan Aizuddin later suggested that the letter was ultimately a guarantee but was misrepresented as a mere "comfort" and this had raised concerns among some Finance Ministry officials
Shahrol acknowledged some pushback but said he was informed by Low that it could be "managed"
Shahrol Azral Ibrahim HalmiShahrol, in his letter to the Finance Ministry, had included the proposed "letter of comfort" as an annexe
Najib was at the time the prime minister, finance minister and 1MDB shareholder. He was also the 1MDB board of advisers chairperson
Wan Aizuddin: Based on the letter, I put to you that your true intention of this annexe letter being sent to the Finance Ministry was to manipulate the representation as a letter of comfort but based on the letter prepared by Goldman Sachs and 1MDB, it is a letter of guarantee by the government
Shahrol: No comment
Wan Aizuddin: You are the head of 1MDB management, you would be briefed on any such document
Shahrol: I only got talking points from Jho Low. Jho told me the annexed letter came from Goldman Sachs and they are to negotiate with the Finance Ministry. When the pushback came that the letter of comfort looked like a guarantee, he (Low) said he and Najib would manage it on their side
However, Shahrol conceded that he did not take the initiative to confirm the matter with Najib. - Mkini"Jho assured me that things are under control and boss would bulldoze so I left it to him [...]," he said
Wan Aizuddin later suggested that Shahrol was Low's "mirror image" to which lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram joked that the defence shouldn't be "borrowing phrases"
The prosecution, in its opening statement for the case, had accused Low of being Najib's "mirror image"
Wan Aizuddin laughed and said he was doing it with permission
Shahrol disagreed that he was a mirror image of Low
[More to follow]

---