Datuk Seri Najib Razak arrives at the Kuala Lumpur High Court April 20, 2022. — Picture by Hari Anggara
KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 — There was “intimidation” from former finance minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to have KPMG sign off on the audit report for 1Malaysia Development Berhad’s (1MDB) 2013 financial statement, the audit firm’s managing partner told the High Court today.
KPMG managing partner Datuk Johan Idris said this while testifying as the 14th prosecution witness in Najib’s trial over the misappropriation of more than RM2 billion of 1MDB funds.
Johan was asked about a meeting at night on December 15, 2013 between KPMG, 1MDB and then prime minister Najib in the latter’s residence at Jalan Duta, where Johan was the sole KPMG representative allowed into the house for the meeting while other KPMG personnel waited outside.
KPMG had at that time not signed off on the audit report for 1MDB’s financial year ending March 31, 2013, as 1MDB had not provided the information that KPMG had asked for since April 2013.
Following that meeting, Johan had gone home and typed out the minutes of the meeting which he later shared with some of his KPMG colleagues, with the minutes recording Najib as having ordered KPMG to sign the audit by December 31, 2013 or just in about two weeks’ time.
Lead prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram today noted that Johan had previously confirmed to Najib’s lawyer that his minutes did not reflect “pressure” exerted by Najib during the meeting, but asked the KPMG managing partner today to clarify the actual situation on December 15, 2013 at the meeting.
Sri Ram: You were asked to confirm that the minutes do not show there was any pressure exerted by the accused Datuk Seri Najib upon you at this meeting, and you answered yes, the minutes do not reflect it. My question is, it was you at ground zero on that day, was there pressure at all on you?
Johan: Yes, I put it as an intimidation.
Sri Ram: What was the nature of intimidation?
Johan: Well, intimidation for us to conclude and sign the audited financial statements of March 31, 2013.
Sri Ram: And from whom did this come?
Johan: Datuk Seri Najib.
At this point, Najib’s lawyer Wan Aizuddin Wan Mohammed highlighted that the word “intimidation” did not arise in any of Johan’s answers in cross-examination previously, but Sri Ram said it would be for the defence to raise this in submissions and they could not stop a witness from answering questions from his point of view.
The judge also suggested that the defence could raise this in submissions.
Earlier today, Wan Aizuddin suggested that the alleged misappropriation by 1MDB’s management would have been uncovered if KPMG had conducted its audit on 1MDB properly throughout the three financial years of 2010, 2011 and 2012 —- when the audit firm was 1MDB’s auditor.
But Johan replied: “We have always conducted our audit properly.”
Wan Aizuddin: I put it to you that KPMG had acted systematically with the management of 1MDB by turning a blind eye to the ambiguous transaction thus allowing 1MDB monies to be misappropriated.
Johan: Totally disagree with it.
Later, Johan confirmed to Sri Ram that KPMG did not obtain any share of the monies siphoned from 1MDB, saying “not a penny”.
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