Jho Low suggests U2 Bono, Queen Rania as TIA foundation trustees

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KUALA LUMPUR: Fugitive businessman, Low Taek Jho or Jho Low proposed big names as members of the board of trustees of a foundation that was to be set up by the Terengganu Investment Authority (TIA), according to Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s former special officer.

Datuk Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin, 43, confirmed yesterday that the foundation, meant to be under TIA, the predecessor of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) had in its list of board of trustees, Irish rock band lead vocalist Bono, Queen Rania of Jordan and Walt Disney ex-chief executive officer (CEO) Michael Eisner.

He was being cross-examined by Najib’s lead counsel Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah on the eighth day of the former premier’s 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) trial.

Sifting through the documents dated May 4, 2009 related to the setting up of TIA and its charitable foundation, Muhammad Shafee said the document had proposed Terengganu ruler, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, who in 2009 was also the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong, as chairperson of the foundation.

Among other names listed in the document read aloud in court by counsel were former prime minister’s wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor; former Terengganu Menteri Besar, Datuk Seri Ahmad Said; Mubadala Development CEO, Khaldoon Al Mubarak; ExxonMobil ex-chairman, Lee Raymond; and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE chairman and chief executive Bernard Arnault.

Muhammad Shafee: Do you know how all of these names came about?

Amhari Efendi: Jho Low provided these names in one of the notes to Najib’s principal private secretary, the late Datuk Azlin Alias and myself, in one of our meetings in Prince Hotel.

Muhammad Shafee: Do you know if it came to be true?

Amhari Efendi: I’m not sure.

Muhammad Shafee: I’m suggesting to you these names are thrown by Jho Low to impress the Terengganu government and federal government.

Amhari Efendi: I don’t know.

Muhammad Shafee: I put it to you, most of the personalities didn’t even know their names were quoted.

Amhari Efendi: I don’t know.

Counsel further suggested that the big names were signs that Jho Low were conning them, to which the eighth prosecution witness denied any knowledge.

Muhammad Shafee: How did Bernard Arnault’s name come up? Did it cross your mind what Louis Vuitton was doing in TIA? Did it strike you that it could be a con job?

Amhari Efendi: I do not know.

The witness also agreed to a suggestion by counsel that the name change from TIA to 1MDB was the idea of 1MDB former CEO, Shahrol Azral Ibrahim Halmi based on the letter from the latter to the Pekan MP dated June 25, 2009.

Muhammad Shafee: Based on the letter, the MDB name was Shahrol’s idea, minus the 1.

Amhari Efendi: From the letter, yes.

Counsel then read out a script from an annual report produced by Malaysia-based investment holding company UBG Berhad.

Muhammad Shafee: From all that you have seen today, are you surprised that Jho Low was in fact, eyeing petroleum in Terengganu through this UBG report? Amhari: Relatively surprised, yes.

Shafee: Jho Low did not tell you?

Amhari: No.

Najib, 66, is facing four charges of abusing his position to corruptly obtain RM2.3 billion of 1MDB funds and 21 counts of money laundering related to the money.

The Pekan MP allegedly committed the four offences at AmIslamic Bank Berhad, Jalan Raja Chulan branch, Bukit Ceylon here between Feb 24, 2011, and Dec 19, 2014, and the 21 charges, between March 22, 2013, and Aug 30, 2013, at the same place.

The trial before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues today. — Bernama