KUALA LUMPUR – In justifying his ignorance over the goings-on in SRC International Bhd and also the management of his private banking accounts, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said: “I didn’t know because I was busy looking after the whole country. Can you accept that?”

The former prime minister and finance minister said this when he was questioned about huge sums of SRC International money which had gone in and out of his bank accounts.

Mr Najib’s reply asking whether his answer was acceptable solicited an immediate response from lead prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaram who said in a tongue-in-cheek fashion: “I better not respond to your question as my reply will not be flattering. We all have a view on it (on how the country was being run).”

Earlier, Mr Sithambaram also took another dig at Mr Najib when the 66-year-old Pekan member of parliament kept insisting that signatures on certain documents, which had been tendered as evidence, may not be his.

The DPP quipped that Mr Najib’s answers were akin to what had been said in a famous trial previously where the accused had insisted that the person in an infamous sex-video clip “looked like him and sounded like him but was not him”.

The remark caused even Mr Najib to break out in a smile.

It happened when Mr Sithambaram asked Mr Najib if one of the particular documents he was referring to contained the latter’s name and signature.

Mr Najib: “It looks like my signature but I have my doubts.

Mr Sithambaram: “Whenever you say that, it reminds me of a previous, famous case of ‘looks like me, sounds like me but it is not me’.

The hearing on Wednesday was centred on the prosecution cross-examining Mr Najib on his signatures on contentious documents which the latter is now claiming may have been forged.

Mr Najib argued that he cannot be held responsible if any wrongdoing had been committed in the management of his private bank accounts as he had never sanctioned such things.

He insisted that he had delegated the management of his banking accounts to his private secretary.

He did not budge from this stance despite being pressed on the logic of his answers.

“If something wrong was committed how can I be held responsible?” Mr Najib kept saying when Mr Sithambram repeatedly asked him whether he was personally responsible for his own banking transactions.

At one point, an exasperated Mr Sithambaram hit out at Mr Najib by saying: “It looks like you are responsible for nothing.”

Mr Najib remained unfazed by the sarcasm and replied: “If someone does something not right, how can I be held responsible? There are things they did that I am not aware of.”

Asked if he had ever disputed his signatures when the documents were shown to him by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), when they recorded his statement, Mr Najib said he did not.

Mr Sithambaram then said it was obvious that Mr Najib was making an issue of it now as an afterthought.

However, Mr Najib denied it and said he only realised his signatures may have been forged during the course of the trial.

Mr Sithambaram will continue cross-examining Mr Najib tomorrow.

Mr Najib is accused of committing three counts of criminal breach of trust and one count of abuse of power involving RM42 million of SRC International funds.

He is also facing three money laundering charges over the same funds. He faces up to 20 years’ jail, if convicted. NEW STRAITS TIMES