Peguam tak puas hati bekas CEO 1MDB 15 kali jawab ‘tiada komen’

Former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi repeatedly answered "no comment" when asked about the RM5 billion bond issuance by the Terengganu Investment Authority. The High Court was informed of Halmi's repeated reluctance to provide a response when questioned by the lawyer representing the defendant in a USD5.64 billion civil suit.

Kelvin Tan Kay Jin, the counsel for former 1MDB investment manager Kelvin Tan, had asked the court to order the 56-year-old Halmi, who had given testimonies as a fourth plaintive witness, to answer questions due to his refusal to repeatedly answer "no comment" during cross-examination. Ganesan sparked the issue after Halmi gave a "no comment" response when Shafee Abdullah, representing Najib Razak, questioned him regarding the issuance of RM5 billion bonds by Terengganu Investment Authority, allegedly ordered by Najib.

Yang Arif, possibly the fifteenth witness to say "no comment", was brought to court to provide testimony. He stated that his statements were contrary to the interests of the defendant. When asked a question that contradicted the interests of the plaintiff, he said "no comment". Ganesan also referred to Section 146 of the Evidence Act 1950, which permits questions to be put to witnesses to test their accuracy, truthfulness or credibility, or to challenge their believability.

Yang Arif, now as a defendant, expressed his frustration at hearing testimonies from witnesses who repeatedly mentioned "no comment" and the direct lack of assistance in uncovering the truth. He also referred to Section 148(2)(c), which allows the court, if deemed appropriate, to consider a witness's unwillingness to answer as indicating the question should have been answered differently.

Ganesan respectfully requested Halmi to answer the question, before the Attorney-General's Chambers, Redzuan Idrus. The request was supported by Shafee, representing Najib, the first defendant in the suit. Redzuan stated that the court would draw its own inference if a witness refuses to answer after being directed to do so. He also expressed concern that the earlier counsel for Halmi did not bring this issue to the court's attention earlier.

The court's puzzlement is that the counsel for the plaintiff did not help or direct their witness to answer the question. The civil suit was filed by 1MDB and its subsidiaries, 1MDB Energy Holdings Limited, 1MDB Energy Limited, 1MDB Energy (Langat) Limited, and Global Diversified Investment Company Limited (formerly known as 1MDB Global Investments Limited) on May 7, 2021.

They named Najib, former 1MDB financial chief Terrence Geh Choh Heng, former executive chairman Casey Tang Keng Chee, former investment manager Vincent Beng Huat Koh, Tan, and former investment manager Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil as defendants. The suit accused the plaintiffs of embezzlement, breach of statutory duty, abuse of power, and conspiring to defraud 1MDB. The trial is ongoing.