Late Saudi king impressed with M'sia's moderate Islam - Najib

1MDB TRIAL | Late Saudi Arabian monarch King Abdullah was impressed with Malaysia’s moderate Islam, which nullified militant and deviant teachings, Najib Abdul Razak testified in the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

The former prime minister said King Abdullah expressed this to him during an official visit in 2010 and would “provide support” so Malaysia could continue with its approach and be an example of what an Islamic country should be.

Najib is relying on his belief in a Saudi promise of a donation to rebut the RM2.27 billion 1MDB abuse of power and money laundering case against him.

“The king was also sensitive to the growing trend of militant and deviant Islamic teachings which were creeping into the Muslim world and asked me to ensure that Malaysia continued to be free of such negative influences.

“In this regard, King Abdullah personally assured me that he would provide me with support to enable me to carry on leading the country as a shining example of how Islam should be practised,” Najib told trial judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah.

The former chairperson of 1MDB’s board of advisers said that the Saudi king also had high praises for Malaysia’s ability to maintain peace in a multicultural society.

Najib recalled that he and King Abdullah discussed the need for Malaysia and Saudi Arabia to strengthen cooperation to eradicate terrorism.

The former finance minister also mentioned to the court that the Saudi monarch awarded him the King Abdul Aziz Order of Merit (First Class) during the first meeting with the Malaysian delegation.

Trial proceedings resume this afternoon.

Najib contended that he had neither knowledge nor involvement in wrongdoing and that embezzlement at sovereign wealth fund 1MDB was solely masterminded by fugitive businessperson Low Taek Jho (Jho Low), his associates, and members of its management.

Low handled arrangements

During the trial this morning, Najib said Low told him that personal donations from King Abdullah were being arranged.

“From the discussion, where King Abdullah assured me that he would provide support to enable me to continue leading the country as a moderate Muslim nation, it was clear that this support would be forthcoming.

“At the time, I understood that the donation was intended for political purposes and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

“Later in 2010, Low informed me that the donations were on their way, and I did not doubt the representation made to me,” Najib said, adding that he trusted Low at the time as the latter had a close relationship with Saudi royalty.

The former premier explained that he was under the impression that the large amount of funds that flowed into his account were legitimate transactions.

“In an absolute monarchy like Saudi Arabia, where the king holds the ultimate authority, it is reasonable for me to believe that if King Abdullah directed the Finance Ministry to disburse funds on his behalf as a donation, the ministry would carry out his request.

“Therefore, to suggest that these funds are not directly from King Abdullah’s personal account but from the Riyadh Finance Ministry, is nonsensical because, to me, they reflect the intentions and authority of King Abdullah himself,” Najib reiterated.

Previously, the former premier testified that “charismatic” Low exploited his trust.

Answerable case

On Oct 30, the criminal court ordered Najib to enter his defence over four abuse of power and 21 money laundering charges involving RM2.27 billion of funds from 1MDB.

Sequerah ruled that the prosecution succeeded in establishing a prima facie (answerable) case against Najib over the Minister of Finance Incorporated’s (MOF Inc) wholly owned company.

The judge ruled that Najib had to answer the charges due to the strength of the various 50 witness testimonies during the prosecution stage of proceedings that lasted six years since the trial began in 2019. The accused was first charged in 2018.

Najib is serving a six-year jail sentence over a separate abuse of power case involving RM42 million of funds from SRC International, a former subsidiary of 1MDB.

Lawyer Wan Azwan Aiman Wan Fakhruddin appeared for Najib.

Deputy public prosecutor Ahmad Akram Gharib prosecuted.

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