DEBUNKED

Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day 10

February 20, 2020

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Jepak never delivered the solar hybrid system for schools in Sarawak under the Education Ministry’s contract.

9.50am: Accused Rosmah Mansor enters the Kuala Lumpur High Court and takes a seat at the front row of the public gallery.

Also in court are DPP Ahmad Akram Gharib and other DPPs, as well as defence counsel Azrul Zulkifli Stork and other members of the defence team.

10.19am: Rosmah is seen in the dock as proceedings before High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan begins.

Seen sitting in the witness stand is Treasury deputy secretary-general Othman Semail, the seventh prosecution witness who is set to be cross-examined by the defence.

Also seen in court are Rosmah’s defence counsel Akberdin Abdul Kader and Jagjit Singh, among others.

11am: Akberdin in his cross-examination of Othman takes the witness through Finance Ministry (MoF) procedures for direct negotiation.

He also shows the witness, who is now the Treasury deputy secretary-general, minutes that were written by the then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak during the material time of the solar project between 2015 and 2017.

These include a minute issued by Najib on Dec 1, 2015, where the premier wrote on a Jepak Holdings letter citing his approval for the solar project; Najib’s minute in June 2016 ordering the then education minister Mahdzir Khalid to execute Jepak’s proposal; and a minute dated Jan 16, 2017.

The Jan 2017 minute was written by Najib, ordering the then MoE secretary-general Alias Ahmad to monitor the solar hybrid project and “follow procedures to ensure there would be no problem to students learning”.

Othman then agrees to a suggestion by the counsel that despite Najib having ordered for the project to be executed, the prime minister also wanted MoE to follow procedures.

11.42am: Othman agrees that Alias should not have issued a letter of agreement (SST) to Jepak in relation to the solar hybrid project for schools in Sarawak, the High Court hears.

Akberdin is referring to Othman having expressed many reservations about the project through memos to Najib, and yet Alias still issued the SST.

Akberdin: It is strange that in this case, you issued many views, even used the word “cynic” here, but the Education Ministry secretary-general knew about the problems of the project and still issues SST on Nov 10, 2016?

Othman: We did not know that they issued the SST then.

Akberdin: If follow the SST, have to abide by procedures.

Othman: We only found out later.

Akberdin: It is improper to issue (SST) as the price negotiation not done yet?

Othman: Yes.

Earlier, Othman agrees that despite Najib having issued a minute for the project to be carried out, the Education Minister and officers involved still needed to ensure that the premier’s directives can actually be carried out and explain to the premier if it could not be done.

Justice Zaini then allows proceedings to go for a short break.

11.57am: Proceedings resume.

12.25pm: Othman testifies that “they themselves know they did not do” in relation to performing due diligence before a letter of agreement (SST) was issued to Jepak.

During cross-examination by Akberdin, Othman says this about Paragraph 163 of his witness statement, where he used the word “cynical statement”.

The “cynical statement” is in relation to a letter from the Finance Ministry to Alias on Jan 20, 2017.

The letter contained a statement that “the MoF is of the view that KPM (Education Ministry) had taken due diligence on the implementation of the procurement before SST is issued to the company (Jepak Holdings)”.

In relation to this, the witness statement has Othman stating that the issuance of the SST for the solar project did not abide by procedure for direct negotiation established by the circular letter of the MoF and other regulations.

“They themselves know that they did not do it. They should understand,” Othman says.

However, he does not explain further on this.

12.35pm: The court hears from Othman that to his knowledge, the solar hybrid system for schools in Sarawak under the Education Ministry’s contract with Jepak was never delivered.

Othman says that only diesel supply and maintenance for diesel-powered generators at the schools had been carried out by the company so far.

“I am not updated with the latest status, whether this contract has been terminated or not.

“But what had been carried out thus far is only the supply of diesel and maintenance works,” he testifies.

12.37pm: As the defence finishes the cross-examination on Othman, DPP Akram takes over the examination on the Treasury deputy-secretary general.

12.50pm: Eighth prosecution witness Razak Othman takes the stand.

1pm: Razak Othman testifies that he is a business partner of Jepak Holdings’ managing director Saidi Abang Samsudin, sharing a business together under a company named Trace Tag Asia Sdn Bhd.

Razak, 52, tells the court how Saidi had offered him to join the company in 2016, where Saidi mainly plays the part of the company’s financier.

According to the eighth prosecution witness, he had sometime in December 2016 gone to Maybank Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman in Kuala Lumpur to cash a cheque of RM30,000 which Saidi had given the company to purchase a lorry for their business.

However, before doing so, Razak had waited for Saidi at a coffee shop where both of them later had some drinks, before going into the bank together.

Razak testifies that they had exited the bank later and went to a shop near the Sogo shopping complex, where Saidi purchased two black luggage bags.

They then returned to the first floor of the same bank where the cash office is located.

Razak tells the court that he helped Saidi pack RM5 million into the two bags that Saidi purchased earlier.

The cash, in RM100 denomination, were divided equally into the two bags.

They then took the bags and put them into Saidi’s Range Rover, which was driven by the latter’s driver Shamsul. However, before they left the area, a man whom Razak said he did not know, had joined them in the car.

They then drove to a building near the Pavilion shopping complex, where Razak and Saidi took the bags to an upper floor.

Razak says that they later took the bags back to the building’s lobby and put them into a vehicle which he described as either a Toyota Alphard or Vellfire.

They then left the building and returned to the Maybank branch, where Razak took his car and returned home.

Razak testifies that he only followed Saidi on the grounds of being friends and did not know for whom the cash was for or for what purpose.

1.13pm: Razak testifies that a few months after he had helped Saidi with loading the cash into the two bags, the witness was informed by Saidi that the money was for “RM”.

“A month or two later, Saidi said that the money was for RM. I did not know what that means.

“I feel that Saidi intentionally kept the matter a secret,” Razak says.

The court previously heard from another witness that the bags were brought from Maybank, then to Pavilion, and finally to a house at Jalan Langgak Duta.

1.15pm: Judge Zaini allows proceedings to adjourn for the day.

Earlier reports:

Feb 20, Witness Tells Rosmah’s Trial Jepak MD Gave RM5 Million to “RM”

Feb 19, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Nine

Feb 18, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Eight

Feb 18, Rosmah’s Lawyer Tears into Madinah’s Testimony

Feb 17, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Seven

Feb 17, Ex-Education Ministry Sec-Gen: Business Partners Fought over RM1.2B Solar Project

Feb 13, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Six

Feb 13, Mahdzir Denies Hiring Lawyer to Broker Deal with AGC

Feb 12, Rosmah’s Bribe Trial: Day Five

Feb 12, Rosmah’s Refusal to Leave Accused Dock During Lunch Break Prompts Early Adjournment