KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 10): Former education minister Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid (pictured, centre) today rebuffed Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor's suggestion that he allegedly received a bribe of RM50,000 from Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd managing director Saidi Abang Samsudin.
The witness was asked about the bribe during cross-examination by Rosmah's counsel Datuk Jagjit Singh, who showed him an article from Berita Harian dated Nov 30, 2018, which claimed Mahdzir had received the bribe and could be charged last year (2019).
During his examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Idham Abdul Ghani previously, Mahdzir said he had neither solicited nor received any bribes from Saidi for the solar hybrid project.
"I only followed Datuk Seri Najib Razak's instruction to implement the solar hybrid project to Jepak. I only received pressure from team Saidi regarding the project," he testified then.
Team Saidi, according to Mahdzir's testimony on Thursday (Feb 6), refers to people associated with Saidi, including Rosmah's former aide Datuk Rizal Mansor and Pekan Umno division secretary Datuk Ahmad Aazmey Abu Talib.
Below is an excerpt of the cross-examination today:
Jagjit: I put it to you that you are not telling the truth regarding the solar hybrid project as you did receive money from Saidi?
Mahdzir: I do not agree.
Jagjit: I put it to you that you were earlier implicated with this as alleged in the newspaper article on Nov 30, 2018.
Mahdzir: I was not aware of the article.
Jagjit: I put it to you that you are asked to implicate my client, so you did solicit and receive a bribe, and that you were to be charged?
Mahdzir: I do not agree.
Jagjit: Based on the instruction I received, you are the most corrupt education minister?
Mahdzir: I disagree.
Jagjit: You were not charged so that you would implicate my client?
Mahdzir: I disagree.
Jagjit also suggested that Mahdzir received the RM50,000 bribe while he was on a trip to the United Kingdom with his family, which the witness denied.
Rosmah is facing three charges, namely soliciting RM187.5 million from Saidi between January and April 2016, and receiving RM5 million and another RM1.5 million in 2016 and 2017, respectively, in relation to the implementation of a solar hybrid project to power 369 schools in Sarawak.
Mahdzir, who is also Padang Terap Member of Parliament, is the fifth prosecution witness to testify in Rosmah's trial.
Jepak not qualified for solar hybrid project
Further questioned by Jagjit, Mahdzir agreed that Jepak did not seem to qualify to take on the solar hybrid project, as the company was previously only in the business of car rental and transport provision.
The former minister also said that when Jepak was awarded the project, the ministry had to come up with a contingency plan as the work was not progressing well.
He added for this reason, he was hesitant to approve the project without go-ahead from the ministry's technical committee first.
The former minister also agreed with Jagjit's suggestion that his task as the minister was to ensure that all proposals submitted for approval to the ministry was in order.
During examination-in-chief by deputy public prosecutor Idham Abdul Ghani last week, Mahdzir said he had been pressured by Rosmah, as well as her husband Najib, into approving Jepak's project despite there being an existing contract of about a year for another party to supply genset diesel to the schools for its electricity supply.
The trial continues tomorrow before Justice Mohamed Zaini Mazlan.