KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 5): Datuk Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin "solely depended" on the words of his late boss Datuk Azlin Alias, as well as Low Taek Jho — aka Jho Low — to act on the fugitive financier’s instructions, as hierarchy had prevented him from speaking directly to the Prime Minister, the High Court was told today.
Amhari did not confirm the veracity of several of Jho Low's instructions with then-Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, because he followed the protocol in the civil service, which did not allow him to skip levels in the hierarchy.
The witness implied this after defence lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah questioned his inaction, despite meeting Najib at least once a week.
Shafee: You’re saying you had no opportunity to raise this matter to the PM when you met him many times, at least once a week? You couldn’t raise this?
Amhari: I can't. I had to listen to Azlin. In the civil service, I have to follow the rules. I have to report to my direct superior. It would be embarrassing for me to do otherwise. Unless Azlin told me to check.
Shafee: You confirm you depended entirely on Jho Low and Azlin’s words.
Amhari: Yes.
Azlin served as the chief private secretary to Najib until he passed away in 2015.
Meanwhile, Amhari was Najib's special officer and was serving as a director in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
The witness, Azlin and Jho Low met frequently in late-night top secret meetings in Kuala Lumpur up until 2015, where Jho Low conveyed instructions from Najib on 1MDB matters, Amhari testified previously.
However the witness also testified earlier that Azlin had checked with Najib about instructions that seemed extraordinary, such as speeding up financial approvals and Jho Low's shortlist of 1MDB board member candidates — and the former premier confirmed he had given his approval.
Amhari got closer to Najib from 2016 onwards, when he served as the Prime Minister's representative to China and Abu Dhabi to resolve 1MDB's debt concerns, which was then a hot topic in the media.
Najib is charged with 25 counts of money laundering and abuse of power, involving billions of ringgit allegedly siphoned from 1MDB.