Teacher charged with abuse of power over school supplies purchase

BUTTERWORTH: A teacher was charged in the Sessions Court here yesterday with two counts of abuse of power by ordering school supplies from her company in 2017.

Hazlina Kasah, 46, pleaded not guilty to both charges which were read out to her by an interpreter before Judge Zulhazmi Abdullah.

On the first charge, Hazlina, a Grade DG48 education officer, was accused of using her position as the school’s physical education and health committee head at SMK Pokok Sena then, by proposing her own company Hazwan Event Management Company as a supplier.

She was charged with supplying 10 reams of A4-sized paper, 30 whiteboard markers, a radio, a blood pressure monitor, three compasses, two weighing scales, a trampoline and 10 reams of coloured paper through a requisition order K171D/17, worth RM2,353.66 on Oct 17, 2017.

On the second count, Hazlina, who has since been transferred to a different school, was charged with committing a similar offence by supplying five footballs and one futsal ball through a requisition order K171C/17 worth RM522.66 to the same company on Oct 19, 2017.

Both charges were framed under Section 23 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 and punishable under Section 24 of the same law, which provides a maximum jail term of 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount or value of the bribe or RM10,000, or whichever is higher upon conviction.

The court allowed bail of RM8,000 in one surety for the two charges with the additional condition that the accused must surrender her travel documents to the court and report to the nearest MACC office every month and prohibited from harassing witnesses in the case.

MACC prosecuting officer Mohamad Azlan Basri prosecuted while the accused was not represented.

The court fixed June 27 for re-mention of the case and instructed the accused to appoint a lawyer.