Tommy Thomas – a logical choice to take on the 1MDB scandal

The talk of the town the past few days has been about Tommy Thomas (above), the advocate and solicitor widely reported as being the unanimous choice of Pakatan Harapan for the post of attorney-general, to replace Apandi Ali.

Many have voiced support for Thomas, but there are also those who do not agree with the government’s choice. Those who disagree offered many reasons why he should not be the AG and while some arguments may be valid, most do not seem to be grounded in reason.

But what we all can agree on is that one of the most important tasks for the new AG to undertake is to resolve the 1MDB scandal, which includes prosecuting those responsible and to recover as much money as possible to be used for the benefit of Malaysians.

What we know so far, from several years of reporting by The Wall Street Journal, The Edge, Sarawak Report and others, is that the 1MDB scandal is fiendishly complicated. 1MDB appears to have received several billion US dollars from issuing bonds backed by the Malaysian government’s guarantees of repayment.

Sophisticated international financial institutions such as Goldman Sachs are reported to have been involved in 1MDB’s bond issuances. We also know that the money received by 1MDB from issuing these bonds was funnelled through a complex and opaque web of companies in notorious tax havens like the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.

Some of this money was used to purchase artwork, jewellery, luxury properties and yachts in the US and Europe, and even to finance several Hollywood movies.

But where is the rest of the 1MDB money? Why were 1MDB’s bond proceeds able to be diverted in the first place? And most importantly, who is responsible for this debacle?

These burning questions can only be answered at a trial of all the persons and institutions involved in 1MDB. Cases may have to be filed in the courts of several countries, involving hundreds of thousands of documents, especially accounting and financial statements. Needless to say, these trials will be lengthy and complicated.

Hence, it is important to have an AG with an in-depth understanding of complex bond disputes and asset tracing and recovery of proceeds of fraud, and most importantly, a track record in conducting trials of such a complex nature which involve tremendous quantities of documents and require effective cross-examination of many witnesses.

In this regard, Tommy Thomas would be a very logical choice to take on this Herculean task. He has been one of the country’s most experienced commercial litigators for the past 40 years, dating back to the 1980s when he represented Bank Bumiputra in recovering its losses from the Lorrain Osman scandal.

In the mid-2000s, Thomas acted for the Securities Commission in tracing and following the proceeds of the infamous Swisscash Ponzi scheme, and obtained worldwide ‘Mareva’-type injunctions to freeze and repatriate a significant portion of those monies.

Thomas also acted as lead counsel in two of the best-known bond recovery cases in Malaysia (the Pesaka Astana Berhad and Aldwich Berhad bonds), which have been reported in Malaysian law journals.

Some have said that Thomas has no experience in criminal law. But the 1MDB scandal is a case of complex financial fraud spanning many different jurisdictions. When it comes to criminal procedure, the Prosecution Unit of the Attorney-General’s Chambers is filled with experienced criminal prosecutors who can advise Thomas in criminal procedure if need be.

At the end of the day, in criminal proceedings what is most important is the weight of the evidence and most competent lawyers have the necessary appreciation of such matters.

It is imperative that the 1MDB scandal comes to a conclusion favourable to Malaysians. As such, the selection of the AG for the next couple of years is of the utmost importance. We simply cannot let the perpetrators and beneficiaries of the biggest financial scandal in our country’s history escape justice.

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SYAHREDZAN JOHAN is a lawyer. -Mkini

✍ Sumber Pautan : ☕ Malaysians Must Know the TRUTH

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