PUTRAJAYA: Najib Razak today denied sending his former special officer Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin on a “secret mission” to China in 2016 to secure a bailout for 1MDB and SRC International Sdn Bhd.
The former prime minister told his 1MDB trial that it would have been “ridiculous” for the Chinese government and its state-owned companies to intervene in 1MDB and SRC’s financial troubles.
He said such a move would expose China to “international condemnation”.
“Amhari went to China because I wanted him to get feedback (from the Chinese government) on whether they wanted to be involved in our infrastructure projects.
“He (Amhari) is quite an intelligent person, I don’t think he cannot handle (the task),” he said, noting that Amhari was also serving as the economic director in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) at the time.
Deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib then asked whether Wisma Putra was involved in Amhari’s trip to China.
Najib said the foreign ministry and other agencies would “come in later” if the Chinese showed interest in collaborating with Malaysia.
Akram: Does Amhari know Mandarin?
Najib: They (Chinese) have a lot of interpreters. And many of them (Chinese government officers) can speak English.
Akram: (Fugitive businessman) Jho Low (Taek Jho) was with Amhari. Do you agree that Low also took part in the discussions, and not only facilitated the logistics for Amhari?
Najib: I do not agree.
Amhari had testified in 2019 that he had been tasked with “rescuing both companies in a rather abnormal way”.
Akram then suggested that Low had provided Amhari with “talking points” for discussions with Chinese officials.
Najib, however, said he was unaware of what Amhari had said during the meeting with the Chinese.
The hearing continues before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
Najib is standing trial on 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering over funds amounting to RM2.28 billion deposited into his AmBank accounts between February 2011 and December 2014.
