ZAHID WITHDREW RM9.3m FROM FOUNDATION ACCOUNT AFTER GE14
Final transaction of RM9.3m was made three weeks after GE14, says MACC officer
THE High Court here yesterday heard that former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi withdrew RM9.3 million from Yayasan Akalbudi’s bank account three weeks after the 14th General Election (GE14).
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigating officer Khairudin Kilau said that based on a bank statement of the charity foundation belonging to Zahid, this was the last withdrawal from the account.
The withdrawal, he said, was made by Zahid as the latter was the foundation’s sole signatory.
The final prosecution witness said the RM9,302,823.66 withdrawal was made on May 28, 2018 and paid to Yayasan Al-Falah, a foundation belonging to Zahid’s brother, Datuk Seri Mohamad Nasaee Ahmad Tarmizi.
However, the witness said the purpose of the payment was unclear.
“Based on my investigations, I did not find any meeting minutes or resolution on the money transfer.
“The transaction was made on May 28, 2018. At that time, Zahid had the authority to make money transfers as he was the sole signatory in Yayasan Akalbudi,” he said under an examination-inchief conducted by deputy public prosecutor Lee Keng Fatt.
Khairuddin was testifying in Zahid’s trial over 47 charges involving tens of millions of ringgit of Yayasan Akalbudi funds.
On the connection between Yayasan Akalbudi and
Yayasan Al-Falah, Khairuddin said the two entities had no official relations.
He said there was no documentation found on contributions to Yayasan Al-Falah by Yayasan Akalbudi.
He testified that RM100 million of Yayasan Akalbudi funds had flowed out of its bank account between December 2012 and May 2018.
He said that based on the foundation’s Affin Bank statement, the same amount also went into the foundation’s bank account during the same period.
The foundation, he said, had only a bank account and that during investigations, the account was not blocked from any incoming or outgoing transaction. Meanwhile, Khairudin said Yayasan Akalbudi did not operate at its registered address.
He said checks at the address registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysian (CCM) showed the foundation was not there.
According to the CCM website, the registered address for Yayasan Akalbudi is at Jalan Raja Abdullah here.
“I received documents from CCM on the foundation’s establishment.
“But other documents, such as its annual reports and audit reports, were not handed over to me,” he said.
During cross-examination by Zahid’s counsel, Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Zainal, Khairuddin agreed that a registered address and a business address according to the CCM company form were two different elements.
Khairuddin agreed that normally, a registered address could be the address of the company’s secretary.
Asked if the company’s secretary shouldered the responsibility of preparing audited accounts although there were no instructions given, he answered in the affirmative.
Zaidi: This means that when the time comes, a secretary must prepare the (relevant) documents because (he or she) is paid to do so?
Khairudin: That’s right.
Khairudin said Yayasan Akalbudi could not accept any political donation as it was a foundation, not a political party.
Asked if Zahid could accept political donations from “third parties” through Yayasan Akalbudi, the witness did not agree.
The trial continues today before judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
Zahid, 68, faces 47 charges, 12 of them for criminal breach of trust, eight for corruption and 27 for money laundering involving tens of millions of ringgit of Yayasan Akalbudi funds.