‘ANTHONY SOUGHT DIRECT NEGOTIATION FOR UMS PROJECT’
Ex-Sabah minister sent letters to PM’s Office after tender was closed in 2014, court told
FORMER Sabah infrastructure development minister Datuk Peter Anthony, 50, tried to secure a tender for Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) maintenance work by sending a direct negotiation letter to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Sessions Court was told yesterday.
He sent the letter to then prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s principal private secretary, the late Datuk Azlin Alias, a month after the tender was closed.
Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigation officer Mazery Mohd Zaini said this when testifying as the 10th prosecution witness in the trial.
He said the tender was initially opened to the public in April 2014.
He said 11 contractors had applied for the tender to carry out maintenance work on the mechanical and electrical (M&E) system at UMS.
The contenders included Asli Jati Engineering Sdn Bhd, a company owned by the accused.
“One of the contractors, RE MT Utama Sdn Bhd, had won the tender after it closed in May.
“However, Anthony then sent several letters to Najib between June and July, asking for a direct negotiation of the project,” he said during his examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin.
Wan Shaharuddin, when met after the proceedings, said Najib was expected to testify as the prosecution witness as soon as the trial resumes after the Hari Raya holidays.
“He is one of our key witnesses and will take the witness stand on May 19.”
In July, Anthony, who is the managing director of Asli Jati Engineering, was charged with falsifying a document.
The document was related to a purported collaboration with UMS to fund and set up an M&E technical training centre via direct negotiation in July 2014.
The Parti Warisan Sabah vice-president was also charged at the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court in June the same year with money laundering and criminal breach of trust involving the purchase of Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority land.