A finance manager told the High Court she was instructed to prepare RM800,000 in cheques as donations to Bersatu linked to a Jana Wibawa project.
KUALA LUMPUR: A finance manager at KCJ Engineering Sdn Bhd told the High Court today that she was instructed to prepare four cheques totalling RM800,000 as donations to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) linked to a Jana Wibawa government project that had been awarded to the company.
The 19th prosecution witness, Zuriedah Deres @ Musa, 49, said the company’s managing director Datuk Azman Yusoff ordered her to issue the cheques but did not provide further details about the project itself.
“As I recall, on Sept 1, 2022, Datuk Azman met me at the KCJ Engineering office at Bukit Jelutong Industrial Park, Shah Alam, Selangor, and instructed me to prepare the cheques as contributions to Bersatu amounting to RM800,000.
“I confirm that I prepared four cheques dated Sept 1, 2022, each valued at RM200,000. I also confirm that I wrote on all four cheques indicating that the payment was to Bersatu. The cheques were Maybank Islamic cheques, and the funds were drawn from KCJ Engineering’s Maybank Islamic account,” she said.
She was testifying during the trial of former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who faces seven charges of abuse of power and money laundering.
Zuriedah also told the court that after preparing the cheques, she approached Mohd Zaid Yusoff and Zulhelmi Mairin for their signatures, explaining that the RM800,000 donation to Bersatu was on Azman’s orders.
“After the four cheques were signed by Mohd Zaid and Zulhelmi Mairin, I handed them over to Datuk Azman on the same day. I confirm that I did not deal with anyone from Bersatu after I gave the cheques to Datuk Azman. He handled all further matters regarding them.
“I also confirm that neither before Sept 1, 2022, nor after that date, did I ever receive any instruction from Datuk Azman to prepare any other form of donation to Bersatu,” she said.
Under examination by deputy public prosecutor Wan Nur Iman Wan Mohd Afzal, Zuriedah identified Mohd Zaid and Zulhelmi as directors at KCJ Engineering who were present on Sept 1, 2022.
She explained that they were only authorised to sign cheques up to RM200,000. Anything above that amount would have required Tengku Sarah’s signature, but she was out of town at the time.
When questioned by Wan Nur Iman about Tengku Sarah, Zuriedah identified her as a shareholder at KCJ Engineering at the time.
Zuriedah also testified that throughout her time at KCJ Engineering’s finance department, from late 2019 onwards, she never prepared nor instructed any of her subordinates to prepare donation cheques to any political party other than Bersatu.
When Wan Nur Iman asked whether she had ever prepared cheques for any party other than Bersatu, Zuriedah replied: “This is the first time I have prepared a cheque to a political party.”
Asked about the usual procedure for issuing donation cheques, Zuriedah said: “Datuk Azman would usually call me and instruct me to issue cheques to whomever he wanted.”
She added that throughout her tenure at KCJ Engineering, she never received any instruction from Azman to prepare donation cheques to any political party other than Bersatu.
Zuriedah told the court that in addition to Bersatu, KCJ Engineering had also issued cheque donations to various NGOs and schools that had requested support.
She said Azman’s instruction was not unusual, as the company regularly made such donations to mosques, schools and other organisations.
Under cross-examination, she agreed with Muhyiddin’s counsel Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad that she could not deny KCJ Engineering had contributed to other political parties as well. She also confirmed, when asked, that Azman or KCJ Engineering had made cash donations too.
Muhyiddin, 79, who was then Prime Minister and Bersatu president, was charged with four counts of abuse of power for allegedly soliciting RM232.5 million in bribes for the political party from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, Nepturis Sdn Bhd, Mamfor Sdn Bhd, and Datuk Azman Yusoff in connection with the Jana Wibawa project.
He was accused of committing the offence at the Prime Minister’s Office, Bangunan Perdana Putra, Putrajaya, between March 1, 2020, and Aug 20, 2021, under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act 2009, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine of five times the value of the gratification or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.
The Pagoh MP also faces three charges of receiving RM200 million in unlawful proceeds from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, which were deposited into Bersatu’s Ambank and CIMB Bank accounts, allegedly committed in Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur between February 2021 and July 2022.
These charges were brought under Section 4(1)(b) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine of either five times the value of the proceeds from unlawful activities or RM5 million, whichever is higher.
The trial before Judge Noor Ruwena Md Nurdin resumes tomorrow.
