Bakke said he sent an SMS from his Blackberry phone sometime in September 2009 informing Najib that the US$700 million had been “diverted” from where it was supposed to have been sent.
He said 1MDB had, in 2009, entered into a joint venture with PetroSaudi International Ltd, or PSI, and that under the contract terms, 1MDB needed to fork out US$1 billion for the venture.
The US$1 billion was supposed to be deposited into the 1MDB-PSI joint venture account but only US$300 million was moved into this account.
“I sent him (Najib) an SMS but I didn’t get a reply, which was not his normal reaction. Usually, he would reply to my messages,” Bakke said, in reply to ad-hoc prosecutor Gopal Sri Ram on the transfer of the US$700 million.
In the main trial, where Najib faces 25 criminal charges of abusing his position for his financial benefit and money-laundering involving almost RM2.3 billion allegedly originating from 1MDB, the court had been told that the US$700 million had been transferred to Good Star Ltd, a company controlled by fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho (Jho Low).
Bakke told the High Court today that he had spoken to Najib on the phone before the 1MDB board meeting of Sept 26, 2009.
He also confirmed that Jho Low was at the board meeting.
“The accused (Najib) basically told me and the directors to focus on the PSI joint venture as he would like us to come up with a decision quickly.
“He said this joint venture is a G2G (government-to-government) initiative with the Saudis and he wanted to witness the signing between 1MDB and PSI, with (the late) King Abdullah’s son present,” he said.
The court had previously heard that Jho Low had passed his mobile phone to Bakke after informing him that Najib was on the line.
The contents of Jho Low’s words and presence at the Sept 26, 2009 meeting were removed in the National Audit Department’s (NAD) audit report on 1MDB on the grounds that it was a “sensitive issue” and to prevent the opposition from “spinning” the facts.
Najib is standing trial for alleged abuse of power as prime minister and finance minister to obtain immunity from legal action and causing amendments to the final 1MDB audit report before it was tabled at the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) meeting.
Arul Kanda is accused of abetting him.
Why Bakke resigned
In his testimony, Bakke said he was dissatisfied with the way the 1MDB management team had handled a RM5 billion fundraising exercise in 2009.
“We (directors) were surprised at why we only received RM4.3 billion, less than what we initially raised and it was strange that we needed to service (a certain amount of) interest. But the management appeared evasive when we confronted them,” he said.
Bakke said during an Oct 3, 2009 meeting, the directors found out that the management staff had failed to reverse the US$700 million transaction.
“We were shocked, angry, and flabbergasted. The management came out with an explanation that they were advised by lawyers that it was the ‘most proper way to do it’.
“Of course we were not convinced!” he added.
Bakke said he confided his unhappiness about the manner in which 1MDB was functioning to fellow directors Ismee Ismail, Che Lodin Wok Kamaruddin and Azlan Mohd Zainol and that he suggested that all of them should quit.
“They nodded their heads when I told them this,” he said.
However, Bakke said, he was the only one who resigned in 2009. Azlan left in January 2010, while Lodin and Ismee quit in 2016.
The hearing will continue on March 7, 2022 before High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan.