Foreign visa system trial: Witness tells court unable to produce proof of attendance for monthly cash payments deliveries to Zahid
SHAH ALAM, May 19 — A company director told the High Court today he was unable to produce any evidence of the monthly visits he personally made to Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s private residence to deliver cash payments amounting to several hundred thousand in Singapore dollars in relation to the federal government’s Foreign Visa System (VLN) contract.
Former Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) director Harry Lee Vui Khiun, who is also the prosecution’s 15th witness, testified as such during former home minister Ahmad Zahid’s Foreign Visa System (VLN) corruption trial.
During cross-examination by defence lawyer Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Zainal, Lee was questioned about his knowledge of the monthly fund payments to Ahmad Zahid for the sole purpose of political contribution from 2014 to 2018 as stated in his witness statement.
Citing Lee’s testimony of having made around 40 monthly cash payment deliveries to Ahmad Zahid’s private residence at Country Heights, Kajang or his official residence at Seri Satria, Putrajaya over the span of four years, Zaidi then asked Lee if he could substantiate his claims of any of the deliveries made.
Zaidi: Do you have any proof you were there on the particular day (for the deliveries)?
Lee: No, I don’t have any proof.
Lee also told the court he was neither asked to produce any transaction history in regards to highway toll fares involving the Touch 'n Go (TnG) electronic payment system nor visitor registration logs when he visited Ahmad Zahid by investigators from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
Zaidi: Did MACC ask for any TnG statements?
Lee: No.
Zaidi: When you enter Country Heights (gated community), nobody can enter without an access card and the driver has to register at the guard house. Did MACC ask you for any such details?
Lee: No.
Lee also affirmed in court that cash payments allegedly given to Ahmad Zahid were for the sole purpose of political donation and that said payments were never reflected in any audited accounts belonging to UKSB.
'According to my understanding, it is for the government of the day,” Lee said.
Lee also told the court the cash payments to Ahmad Zahid would be collectively approved by himself, former UKSB’s administrative manager David Tan and UKSB director Wan Quoris Shah Wan Abdul Ghani.
Earlier, defence lawyer Hamidi Mohd Noh zeroed in on Lee’s credibility as a witness on the stand, suggesting to the latter that there were many details regarding UKSB he was unable to recall despite being in a position of having knowledge over the company’s dealing.
Hamidi: Therefore I put it to you that you are lying about certain parts of your witness statement.
Lee: No I don't lie.
According to the facts of the case, UKSB had entered into several agreements with the Malaysian Government and the Home Ministry for visa facilitation services by operating several One Stop Centres (OSC) in the People’s Republic of China from 2012 onwards.
Ahmad Zahid, 69, is facing 33 charges of accepting a bribe of SG$13.56 million from UKSB, for himself as home minister to extend the company’s contract as the operator of OSC Services in China and VLN Systems as well as maintaining a contract agreement to supply VLN integrated systems to the same company by KDN (Home Ministry).
For the other seven charges, Ahmad Zahid is alleged to have obtained for himself S$1.15 million, RM3 million, EUR15,000 and US$15,000 in cash from UKSB that had links with his official duties.
The trial before Judge Datuk Mohd Yazid Mustafa continues tomorrow.
