: Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s defence contended that the former premier’s endorsement of the acquisition of an independent power plant was made much later, after the idea was initially proposed by other members of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad board of directors.
“Former 1MDB chief executive officer Datuk Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi even mentioned this during his testimony in court, stating that it was a good opportunity for 1MDB to venture into the energy sector in Malaysia and allowing the sector to be managed by a government-owned company, namely 1MDB,” said Wan Azwan Aiman.
Justice Sequerah granted the defence’s request for Najib to sit outside the accused dock, allowing him to stretch his legs. “There is no testimony from any witness in this case, including former 1MDB CEOs Shahrol Azral and Mohd Hazem Abd Rahman, former 1MDB Chief Financial Officer Azmi Tahir, and former 1MDB General Counsel Jasmine Loo, indicating that their actions were done to gratify Datuk Seri Najib,” he said.