Rafizi: I didn’t verify NFCorp bank account papers

KUALA LUMPUR:

PKR Vice-President Mohd Rafizi Ramli told the High Court here today that he did not seek any verification from the bank in regard to the bank account documents of the National Feedlot Corporation Sdn Bhd (NFCorp) which he received from an unknown source.

Mohd Rafizi, 39, who is also PKR secretary-general, said he also did not reassess the contents of the documents with the NFCorp Executive Chairman Dr Mohamad Salleh Ismail.

He also admitted that he found the documents in an envelope sent to his office and that he had no idea how it got there.

“I did not know who sent the documents. I did not reassess the contents of the documents with a third party before making a public statement, and it is my responsibility to find out who the informant was.”

Rafizi said this when answering a question from counsel M David Morais, representing Salleh as the plaintiff in the suit he (Salleh) filed against Rafizi and the Malaysiakini news portal over the purchase of a property in KL Eco City, Bangsar.

Rafizi, who previously worked as an accountant and auditor, said based on his experience, he was quite familiar with financial statements.

“If I have no knowledge of the contents of the documents, I might have thrown all the information away,” he said, admitting that he only learnt that the informant was a former employee of Public Bank after two months of receiving the documents.

In a witness statement submitted to the court, Rafizi, who was represented by counsel Razlan Hadri Zulkifli, said he disclosed the documents pertaining to the NFCorp scandal because it involved public interest and that the public had the right to know.

He said the NFCorp scandal did not only get media attention but had become a hot topic of debate in Parliament.

In the suit filed on June 3, 2013, Salleh, 67, and NFCorp, claimed that on March 7, 2012, Rafizi, who was then PKR strategic director, had made a defamatory statement concerning the purchase of the property during a press conference at the PKR headquarters and that the statement was published by Malaysiakini on the same day.

Salleh said the suit was filed because of the losses suffered as a result of the lies, misleading information, disclosure of confidential banking information and the defamatory statement made by the defendant.

He is seeking general, exemplary and aggravated damages, as well as interest, costs and other relief deemed fit by the court.

He also seeks an injunction to prevent the defendant from continuing to issue statements that can mislead and confuse the public about the issue.

The trial before Judicial Commissioner Azizul Azmi Adnan continues on Monday.

– BERNAMA

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Rafizi: I didn’t verify NFCorp bank account papers

Defamation suit told NFCorp scandal did not only get media attention but also became a hot topic of debate in Parliament.