Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, appearing for Mahathir, told the five-man tribunal that Murad had made grave allegations in an interview with Umno-linked media 25 years after the forex losses had taken place.
Murad had given an interview to The New Straits Times and Utusan Malaysia reporters on Jan 27.
According to the interview, Murad said, among other things, that BNM lost about US$10 billion, but that the central bank did not conduct any internal investigation, and neither did any law enforcement agency.
The lawyer said the witness did not substantiate his allegation with any supporting documents.
Haniff said Murad had claimed that he was informed by foreign markets between 1992 and 1994 about the losses.
“Should he not have, in his position then, taken positive steps to find proof for this allegation, if it were to be true?” he asked.
Murad was appointed manager of the Banking Department of the central bank in April 1992, and later from April 1, 1994, he was made adviser.
Haniff told the RCI that Murad had been convicted of not declaring his assets worth about RM23 million.
“He had also put Anwar in a bad light by making frivolous claims in a statutory declaration (SD),” he added.
Haniff urged the tribunal, chaired by Mohd Sidek Hassan, to recall Murad and former BNM accounts manager Abdul Aziz Abdul Manaf so that they could be questioned.
He said Aziz had testified that BNM lost RM31.5 billion between 1992 and 1993, without referring to BNM annual reports.
Lawyer Gurdial Singh Nijar, appearing for Anwar, said the NST was found liable and paid Anwar RM100,000 in damages for defamation as a result of Murad’s SD.
“His startling revelation had landed the press (NST) in trouble,” he said.
Conducting officer Shuhaimi Ibrahim said events outside the proceedings could not be used to discredit Murad.
The scandal took place during Mahathir’s term as prime minister from 1981 to 2013. Anwar Ibrahim was the finance minister from 1991 to 1998.
The tribunal has yet to make a ruling whether to recall them, although Haniff requested a decision be made today.