Headman: I received RM300
Orang asli chief tells court BN reps gave him money
KUALA LUMPUR: An orang asli village headman has admitted in a High Court here to receiving money allegedly given by Barisan Nasional candidate Datuk C. Sivarraajh and Jelai assemblyman Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail during the 14th General Election.
Harun Siden, who is from the Semai tribe, said he received RM300 from Sivarraajh and Wan Rosdy on May 6, adding that he took this as to vote for Barisan.
“Six other headmen also received RM300 each,” he said during the examination-in chief by DAP candidate M. Manogaran’s counsel K. Shanmuga.
Harun, 42, said Sivarraajh and Wan Rosdy had come to Kampung Tual and Kampung Sinderut in a helicopter that day.
He said after receiving the money, Sivarraajh and Wan Rosdy then handed over RM9,300 to a man called Ahchah to be given to a village headman by the name of Yok Ek.
“The money was to be distributed to voters in Kampung Tual A and B. Each voter received RM50 attached with a receipt stating the recipient’s name, voting centre and Barisan logo. The money was given to voters in the two villages on May 8, a day before polling,” he said.
Harun was testifying in the trial of an election petition filed by Manogaran – the DAP candidate for Cameron Highlands – to nullify the general election results.
Manogaran has named MIC’s Sivarraajh as the respondent in the petition filed on June 4.
He claimed that both Sivarraajh and Wan Rosdy, who is Pahang Mentri Besar, had met nine village heads and gave them money to distribute between RM30 and RM1,000 each to orang asli constituents.
During cross-examination by Sivarraajh’s counsel Datuk Mohd Hafarizam Harun on which political party he had supported, Harun said he did not support any, adding that he was only an ordinary voter.
Asked which candidate he had voted for, Harun replied: “That is my secret”.
Harun said he had used the RM50 to buy rice and other essential items although he felt uncomfortable after receiving the amount, adding that he was unsure whether it was a form of bribery.
The hearing continues today.
The money was to be distributed to voters in Kampungp Tual A and B. Harun Siden