KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 10): Former auditor-general Tan Sri Ambrin Buang told the High Court here today that he agreed the reason Low Taek Jho's name was not mentioned in the final 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) audit report undertaken by the National Audit Department (NAD) was due to the omission of Low's name in 1MDB meeting minutes.

Low is also known as Jho Low.

Ambrin said he agreed with former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah's statement that the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) already knew in 2018 that Jho Low's name was not mentioned in the NAD interim audit report on 1MDB.

"Yes, from what [the] NAD [saw] in the 1MDB minutes [of] meetings chaired by [former 1MDB chairman] Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh... [in] the minutes that were given to us on paper at that time, there was no mention of Jho Low attending [them]," said Ambrin.

Ambrin is the seventh prosecution witness to testify in the 1MDB audit tampering trial, for which Najib is alleged to have abused his power, resulting in omissions during preparation of the final 1MDB audit report.

Shafee: Now, you say that if we look at the PAC proceeding report in 2015, that on Sept 26, (2009), Tan Sri Bakke Salleh verified Jho Low's presence at the meeting... So I ask you this Tan Sri, so you are saying that you were happy to drop Jho Low's name here because on paper he did not attend the meeting, correct?

Ambrin: Yes. There was a minute given by the company (1MDB) to us.

Shafee: Alright. And this was the minute where the chairman who presided over the meeting was Tan Sri Bakke?

Ambrin: Yes.

Shafee: Did anyone explain to you why Tan Sri Bakke signed the minutes, affirming the minutes, why he was willing to drop the name of Jho Low? Why wasn’t Jho Low's name mentioned? Did anybody explain to you?

Ambrin: No.

Shafee: Nobody explained. Now, so if the company provided you with the document, you acted on the document. Correct?

Ambrin: Yes.

Shafee: As far as you are concerned, that is the proof that you can drop Jho Low's name because he is not officially on record?

Ambrin: Yes.

At the trial today before High Court Judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan, Ambrin said he was satisfied with the Malaysian Institute of Accountants' comment on the 1MDB report tabled to the PAC, as the institute described that the NAD had done the audit in an independent and professional manner. 

“This lends credence to the credibility of the report tabled before the PAC,” Ambrin said.

It was reported that the 1MDB audit report was done by the NAD for the PAC in 2016. It was reported that the amendments were made following a Feb 24, 2016 meeting attended by among others, former chief secretary to the Government Tan Sri Ali Hamsa, Ambrin, Najib’s former principal private secretary Tan Sri Shukry Salleh and former 1MDB chief executive officer Arul Kanda Kandasamy.

It was reported that the final 1MDB audit report was presented to the PAC on March 9, 2016.

The trial today before Mohamed Zaini continues on Wednesday (Aug 12).

(Note: The exchange between Ambrin and Shafee has been updated and amended, as the previous version was not accurate. The error is much regretted.)

Read also:
Ambrin: I couldn't agree with the word ‘tampering’
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Deloitte fined RM2.2m over 1MDB scandal

For more stories on the 1MDB audit report tampering trial, click here.