Suboh Yassin, also a director of Jendela Pinggiran Sdn Bhd (JPSB), said signing blank cheques was a common practice when he was with the company between 2014 and 2019.

He was testifying as the second witness in a suit brought by SRC International, JPSB and Gandingan Mentari Sdn Bhd (GMSB) against the Umno headquarters and its Selangor chapter.

He said he knew the practice was improper.

“But I was told by Nik Faisal Ariff Kamil that there were instructions from ‘pihak atasan’ (higher authorities), namely Najib Razak,” Suboh said in his witness statement.

Nik Faisal was the SRC International CEO and also a director of JPSB and GMSB at the time.

Suboh, 74, said Nik Faisal and he were the signatories to cheques issued by JPSB.

He said signing blank cheques meant he did not immediately know who the recipients were and how much they were paid.

Suboh said Nik Faisal then took the cheques and he never saw them again.

The witness said he trusted Nik Faisal as he appeared to be close to Najib.

“I had no reason to doubt Nik Faisal. The entire board of directors accepted whatever and whenever Nik Faisal informed us that certain instructions had come from Najib.

“We acted as directed. This happened throughout my tenure in SRC, GMSB and JPSB,” he added.

The plaintiffs claim that the sums of RM16 million and RM3.5 million were wrongly paid to the Umno headquarters and Selangor Umno, purportedly for corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities.

Suboh said that, “to the best of (his) knowledge”, no CSR activities were conducted for SRC International by JPSB.

“I also do not know the purposes for which JPSB was incorporated nor its business activities,” he said.

Suboh said he did not know why SRC International transferred RM43.96 million to GMSB which was later remitted to JPSB. He also denied knowledge of what JPSB did with the funds.

In their opening statement on Monday, the plaintiffs said Umno received money from a “gargantuan slush fund” worth RM4 billion created from funds diverted, embezzled, and abused from SRC International’s subsidiaries.

Out of the RM4 billion received, which originated from Retirement Fund Incorporated, RM3.6 billion was transferred between 2011 and 2012 to a subsidiary of SRC International incorporated in the British Virgin Islands for investments in the energy and resources sector.

The remaining RM400 million was retained by SRC International in Malaysia for working capital requirements, from which RM43.96 million was sent to GMSB and then to JPSB.

The hearing before Justice Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin Shah Raja Mohzan continues.