This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on May 20, 2019 - May 26, 2019

LAWYERS representing former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak complained over the course of the trial last week that their client was not given access to documents related to his AmBank accounts that are in question.

Last Wednesday, Najib’s lawyer, Harvinderjit Singh, informed Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali of their difficulty in obtaining the bank documents.

Harvinderjit said Najib has been seeking the documents from AmBank since last year but the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had issued a directive to the bank, asking it not to comply with his request.

Harvinderjit argued that the account holder was entitled to have the documents. Najib had five personal bank accounts with AmBank.

Najib’s lead counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, said although the accounts had been closed for some time, the bank was still not willing to provide the documents.

“There is no basis for the MACC to issue the directive,” he maintained, adding that that he had also asked the bank to produce the letter and provision that the MACC was relying on to issue the directive.

Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Saifuddin Hashim Musaimi indicated to the court that his team would reply accordingly.

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