This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 12, 2019 - August 18, 2019
MOST of the prosecution witnesses in the SRC International Sdn Bhd trial of Datuk Seri Najib Razak felt they were put in a difficult position, caught in the middle of something they were not comfortable with, but unable or unwilling to say no to the then prime minister probably for fear of repercussions or of losing their posts.
This appears to be a recurring theme in a number of testimonies, and is perhaps best exemplified by former finance minister II Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah given his ministerial position.
Last week, Husni, the 56th prosecution witness, cited a litany of complaints principally related to Najib, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and SRC that he endured over seven to eight years before resigning in 2016.
For instance, he was not consulted on matters even though they were related to his portfolio. He was not provided with relevant briefings or minutes of meetings, yet was expected to put his signature to important decisions, including the first government guarantee for SRC’s initial RM2 billion loan from Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) or KWAP.
Reduced to being “an office boy”, he said his advice to follow government procedures was given short shrift. And if it was not demoralising enough to be dismissed by his boss, Najib, even top executives at 1MDB and SRC paid him no heed.
Yet, in spite of all that, Husni implied he had little choice — particularly given his “respect and love for the PM”, and wish to “protect” him and the government — but to toe the line.
During examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Izzat Fauzan last week, Husni said he had advised Najib — then also holding the finance portfolio — against the setting up of 1MDB and SRC.
When he counselled Najib against establishing 1MDB without a feasibility study, Najib countered: “I know what I am doing, we are going ahead.”
With those words — apparently from [the time of] Terengganu Investment Authority Bhd (TIA) — Husni said, “I knew I was not involved in all this.”
Najib reiterated the message when Husni advised him against having SRC invest in PetroSaudi International’s venture in the United Arab Emirates, given the company’s zero expertise in oil and gas.
Najib told him not to interfere in matters relating to 1MDB.
Not surprisingly, he felt left out as Najib had put himself solely in charge of matters concerning 1MDB — and even during its previous incarnation as TIA — and SRC, even though Husni felt there ought not to be any difference in the responsibilities or tasks of the two finance ministers.
Still, Husni persisted in attempting to reach out to Najib, even meeting with him more than 20 times to raise issues regarding 1MDB and SRC.
He also said although he was upset that funds were being siphoned out of 1MDB and SRC, he “did not have a choice and was forced to sign” off on documents, including a pivotal government guarantee on the first RM2 billion loan SRC took with KWAP in 2011. (Najib signed off on a subsequent government guarantee for the second RM2 billion loan that SRC got from KWAP a year later).
But Najib did task Husni with creating a debt rationalisation plan for the floundering 1MDB — only to disappoint him again when he put Arul Kanda Kandasamy, former CEO of the company, in charge of the implementation, which incidentally also did not follow Husni’s plan.
With his advice falling on deaf ears, coupled with Najib’s move to transfer him to the housing ministry, Husni resigned from his ministerial post in June 2016 shortly before a Cabinet reshuffle. Later, he also gave up his party positions in Umno and Barisan Nasional.
Datuk Johari Abdul Ghani — the then deputy finance minister — was promoted to finance minister II.
At the time of his resignation, Husni publicly insisted it had nothing to do with 1MDB and SRC.
But in court, he maintained that he hid the true story as he “wanted to cover [for] the prime minister”.
“I left because after working with Najib, with the issues involving 1MDB and other things I do not want to mention here — I know his character. There was no point for me to continue,” he said, in response to questions by Najib’s lead counsel, Tan Sri Mohammad Shafee Abdullah.
Husni also touched on previous allegations of sexual harassment levied against him. He revealed he had been warned by Najib’s then principal private secretary Tan Sri Shukry Salleh that he would be “attacked” by blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin, who would publish sexual harassment allegations against him on Facebook. These claims were then picked up by Umno-controlled daily Utusan Malaysia.
The sexual allegations surfaced after Husni became more vocal about 1MDB after he had resigned, raising the matter in parliament in October 2016.
During cross-examination, Shafee asked Husni if he had raised his concerns with the Cabinet.
“No, there was no discussion [on SRC’s loan request]. Normally, the Cabinet [just say] setuju (agree) ...,” Husni said.
“As a responsible minister of finance II, don’t you think your views should be made known to the Cabinet and not just the prime minister?” asked the lawyer.
“As I have said, I respect and love the PM. If I raised it to the Cabinet ...
“[There was] no need to know. To me, they did not have to know. I mentioned that the PM has full power, so he can decide. In politics, people talk. What will happen to the government? I want to protect the government,” said Husni.
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