NAJIB Razak did not take any action when he found out that US$700 million was transferred to Good Star Ltd, a company controlled by Low Taek Jho, former finance minister II Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah said in court today.

“The amount was paid to Good Star and I asked Najib why.

“He said they had to pay PetroSaudi International and I asked why not pay directly? He kept quiet,” Husni told the Kuala Lumpur High Court during Najib’s corruption trial for misappropriating RM2.28 billion of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) funds.

Husni added: “There was no action from him, when I told him. He was the prime minister, he should have been worried about national finance.

“It it were other people, they would have acted. He (Najib) didn’t do anything. He was the chairman of the board of advisers.”

Husni, the prosecution’s 20th witness, said that something should have been done as it would affect the country’s financial position.

Previously, former 1MDB board of director (BOD) chairman Mohd Bakke Salleh also testified that he did not get a reply from Najib after pointing out that US$700 million was diverted.

Bakke told the court that he had sent the then finance minister and prime minister a text message from his BlackBerry phone after the 1MDB BOD meeting on September 26, 2009, to notify him about the US$700 million diversion to Good Star Ltd. The company was purportedly an affiliate of PetroSaudi International, with which 1MDB had a joint venture.

Bakke said he never got a reply from Najib.

1MDB had taken a US$1 billion loan from Deutsche Bank to obtain a 40% share in the 1MDB-Petrosaudi joint venture (JV) project.

The 1MDB BOD had agreed for the money to be remitted in one transaction with the beneficiary being BSI bank.

Subsequently, however, US$300 million was remitted to the JV company, while US$700 million went to Good Star at RBS Coutts Bank.

Yesterday, a former banker at Deutsche Bank testified that 1MDB had urged the bank to expedite the transfer and also kept the identity of the beneficiaries concealed.

Najib’s lawyer, Shafee Abdullah, however, pointed out that the chairman of the board of advisers (BOA), who was Najib, did not have any power.

Shafee contended that according to 1MDB’s memorandum and articles of association (M&A) member of the BOA are empowered by the BOD and cannot act on their own. This, too, extends to Najib as the chairman, said Shafee.

“The BOA have no teeth, they only advise.

“The power is in the hands of the BOD and they ordered the management to get the US$700 million returned,” the defence lawyer said.

Husni, however, insisted that Najib, as the prime minister, could have still done something about it.

“Najib didn’t worry about this,” Husni reiterated.

“Although he said no interference (in 1MDB), I did meet him several times. 

“As the PM, he could action. He could have called the management, but there was no action. If I were the top leader, I would be shocked and taken action,” he said. 

Husni will take the stand again tomorrow for re-examination by lead prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram.

Najib faces 25 charges, four for abuse of power and 21 for money laundering, allegedly committed between 2011 and 2013. – June 22, 2022.