KUALA LUMPUR – A witness in the case of Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s alleged misappropriation of RM2.3 billion from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) has testified under oath that she has no prior knowledge of her testimonies to the court, the high court heard today.
During cross-examination by defence counsel Tan Sri Mohamed Shafee Abdullah, former Finance Ministry deputy secretary-general (policy) Datuk Siti Zauyah Mohd Desa said her written testimonies to the court were not prepared in her presence.
This is after Shafee had told the court that Zauyah has no value to the defence and the prosecution after she had failed to answer basic questions on her official role managing companies under Minister of Finance Inc (MoF Inc).
“Yang Arif, we are not going anywhere. This is the first time in 46 years I have had such a witness. She is of no use to the prosecution,” said Shafee, referring to Zauyah, who is the 26th prosecution witness.
Shafee had earlier questioned Zauyah as to whether she had drafted the witness statement herself.
Shafee: “Did you draft the witness statement yourself?”
Zauyah: “No.”
Shafee: “Who drafted it for you?”
Zauyah: “The officers in MoF (Finance Ministry).”
Shafee: “Did you read this statement, did you agree to it with your own personal knowledge?”
Zauyah: “I was only given (the statement) at the last minute. I don't have the privilege of reading everything.”
Shafee: “So you did not have the privilege of reading everything, so you do not know everything that is stated there, is that correct?”
Zauyah: “I do not know.”
Shafee: “But at the end of it, did you show that you certified (the witness statement) as being within your knowledge? This is under oath.”
Shafee: “It was drafted by my officers but never in my presence. I was just given the documents.”
In June, Zauyah testified that 1MDB had not consulted her division, MoF Inc, in 2009 over the preparation of its memorandum and articles of association, which included provisions to give Najib, the prime minister at the time, the power to approve the appointments of directors, senior management team members, and matters relating to financial commitments.
Earlier in the day, Shafee was frustrated with Zauyah as she was unable to either deny or confirm the details of a series of emails from her correspondence with 1MDB management back in 2009.
Zauyah replied “I don’t know” or “I am not sure” when grilled by Shafee.
This led Shafee to question why Zauyah was even produced as a witness.
He had then asked the court to stand down to confer with the prosecution on how to proceed with the hearing with these new developments.
The court had stood down and is expected to resume later at 2:30pm in front of justice Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
In the 1MDB-Tanore trial, Najib is charged with four counts of abuse of power in enriching himself with RM2.3 billion of 1MDB funds, and 21 counts of money laundering of the same amount. – The Vibes, August 25, 2022
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