KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 29 (NNN-BERNAMA) — Former AmBank Relationship Manager, Joanna Yu Ging Ping has applied to strike out a suit filed by former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for alleged mismanagement of his bank accounts which are being scrutinised in the ongoing SRC International Sdn Bhd corruption trial.
Lawyer Muhammad Farhan Muhammad Shafee representing Najib said this to the media after case management came up before High Court Judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid today.
Yu was represented by Jessica Ram Binwani.
“Yu filed the application on grounds that the suit was an abuse of the court process and to bolster Najib’s defence in the SRC International case. Yu had also filed a certificate of urgency for case management to be held today.
“We will be responding to the striking-out application as she needs to explain her action thoroughly,” he said adding that the case management is fixed on Feb 4 before High Court Judge Datuk Khadijah Idris.
Najib, through Messrs Shafee & Co, had filed the suit on Dec 9 last year at the High Court and named AmBank, AMMB Holdings Berhad and Yu as the defendants.
According to the statement of claim, the plaintiff claimed AmBank and Yu had committed negligence when handling his bank accounts (ending with 694, 880, 898 and 906) by disclosing it to fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.
Najib claimed that the defendants without authorisation had disclosed his bank statements, debit and credit remittance transactions, and balances of funds of account 694 to Low as the third party.
He claimed that the defendants did not engage with him to report on Low’s action regarding the said bank account and that the bank had facilitated unauthorised third party to make money transfers between accounts 880, 898 and 906.
The Pekan member of Parliament contended that he had been kept in the dark on the details of his own bank accounts statements and other related documents by the bank under Low’s instruction.
He alleged that Low with the help of other unauthorised third parties, had made 20 transactions to regularise the accounts totalling RM12 million through several local and foreign remittances of funds and that the accounts had been ‘red-flagged’ by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).
The former prime minister said the defendants failed to report and get direct instructions from him despite the accounts being red-flagged.
Najib also claimed that he only discovered the act committed by the defendants during the SRC International trial after the prosecution had revealed the conversations between Yu and third parties.
He is seeking special, general, aggravated and exemplary damages from the defendants.
— NNN-BERNAMA