PUTRAJAYA (April 13): Questions surrounding the impartiality of former Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah’s testimony during the SRC International Sdn Bhd trial involving former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak (pictured) emerged at the Court of Appeal today.

Najib's defence questioned trial judge Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali’s unwavering reliance on the former minister's testimony in ordering Najib to enter his defence and eventually finding him guilty.

Lawyer Farhan Read, who is part of Najib’s defence team, said the court had to take into consideration that Ahmad Husni, who testified for the prosecution, is an interested witness who may want to see the former prime minister implicated.

The lawyer further cited the cross-examination of the former Second Finance minister to show that Ahmad Husni has “an axe to grind, especially after he admitted to being upset because he believed that the former premier was the source of allegations of sexual harrassment and graft against him.

Farhan further read the court transcript during the trial of the cross-examination between lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah and Ahmad Husni.

Shafee: So you were upset because there were so many allegations against you?

Ahmad Husni: Yes.

Shafee: Did you associate that tuduhan [accusation] with Datuk Seri Najib?

Ahmad Husni: Yes. Why?

Shafee: I am not interested in your why. You associated [the allegations] with Najib?

Ahmad Husni: Yes. Why?

Shafee: You think Najib was behind the report against you including the sexual harassment of your own staff?

Ahmad Husni: Yes. The whole story.

Defence believes Ahmad Husni's testimony made out of spite

Farhan said that instead of carefully evaluating Ahmad Husni’s testimony, the court took his story – which included how he was treated “like an office boy” in relation to SRC matters and was not allowed to go to Switzerland – wholesale.

He reasoned that the witness said he was barred by Najib from retrieving the frozen funds in Switzerland out of spite, after a fallout between the two which led to Ahmad Husni’s resignation as Second Finance Minister out of spite.

It was previously reported that no one knows the current status of the RM4 billion loaned by the Retirement Fund Inc (KWAP) to SRC in 2011 and 2012.

Farhan added that Justice Nazlan had also omitted from his judgment that the government gave a short-term loan to prevent SRC from defaulting on its repayment to KWAP.

“It was Husni who proposed to extend SRC a short-term loan of RM100 million to enable it to pay back its loan to KWAP,” Farhan stated, adding that the judgment had instead said the proposal came from Najib.

These, he added, show the inconsistencies in the High Court's judgment against the former premier.

Najib has been convicted of all seven charges with regards to abuse of power in relation to the issuance of the GG [government guarantees], where he allegedly received the RM42 million. He has also been convicted of three counts of criminal breach of trust, and another RM42 million for money laundering.

For this, he was sentenced to 12 years jail and fined RM210 million.

Why was Najib chairing Cabinet meeting where two govt guarantees were given?

As Farhan made his submissions on the government guarantees, Justice Datuk Abdul Karim Abdul Jalil asked the lawyer as to why Najib had chaired the two Cabinet meetings discussing the guarantees in August 2011 and March 2012, which led to KWAP approving the RM4 billion loans.

Abdul Karim: Why was he sitting in the Cabinet meeting during the [discussion of the] two GG? Was he sitting as PM or Finance Minister or what?

Farhan: He was sitting as PM.

Abdul Karim: Why was that?

Farhan: The reason is that the Finance Minister has to be there to table the GG?

Abdul Karim : Are you certain?

Farhan: I may have to do some research further.

To this, the judge cut short on the arguments.

Abdul Karim earlier in the hearing today also asked if the Finance Ministry’s former secretary Datuk Maliami Hamad was pressured while preparing the guarantees, to which Farhan agreed, but said that it was part of Maliami's task to prepare the necessary documents for the Cabinet meeting in a hurry.

The hearing continues tomorrow with the prosecution finally starting their submissions on why the conviction should be maintained.

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