KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court was told that the RM1mil withdrawal from the Angkatan Bersatu Anak Muda (Armada) account was not ordered by Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman (pic).
Armada’s former information chief Ulya Aqamah Husamudin, 31, said during a G5 discussion at Syed Saddiq's house, the former youth and sports minister never ordered its former assistant treasurer, Rafiq Hakim Razali to withdraw the money.
"In the discussion, it was stated that the withdrawal amount was according to needs after Rafiq Hakim discussed with the exco members who were responsible," he said on Friday (Feb 24) when reading his witness statement on the third day of Syed Saddiq’s defence proceedings against four charges of abetting criminal breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation of assets and money laundering.
Apart from Ulya Aqamah, the G5 group consisted of Bersatu Youth Wing top leaders, namely Syed Saddiq, who was Armada chief, Rafiq Hakim, the then assistant secretary Ahmad Redzuan Mohamed Shafi and then vice- chief Mohd Aizad Roslan.
According to Ulya Aqamah, he was not aware of how Rafiq Hakim finally chose to divide and distribute the funds.
"The distribution of aid from the funds was on an adhoc basis. Therefore, there was no paperwork needed for the purpose. No paperwork was ever presented to the Bersatu supreme council (MPT) throughout my term.
"Therefore, I have no reason to believe that paperwork should be presented to Bersatu MPT for any production, expenditure or management of any Armada or Bersatu programmes," he said.
In addition, Ulya Aqamah said Syed Saddiq had never said that he was entitled to the money in Armada's account because it was the result of his hard work and it was needed to build political advantage.
Referring the witness to his statement to the MACC, deputy public prosecutor Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin said his statement contradicted the witness statement in court on Friday.
"Your (Ulya Aqamah) statement to the MACC stated that you did not know that YB Syed Saddiq ordered Rafiq Hakim to withdraw RM1mil but in your testimony in court today, you said Syed Saddiq never ordered Rafiq Hakim to withdraw RM1mil.
"Do you agree that these two statements are contradictory and your statement in court today is a lie and an afterthought,” asked Wan Shaharuddin
Ulya Aqamah: I disagree.
The third defence witness disagreed he was unaware about the directive to withdraw the RM1mil because the discussion with the G5 group did not involve him and Mohd Aizad, instead it only involved Syed Saddiq, Rafiq Hakim and Ahmad Redzuan.
Wan Shaharudin then requested to include three pages of Ulya Aqamah’s entire statement to the MACC as an exhibit, but lawyer Gobind Sing Deo objected on the grounds that the statement could not be used to challenge the credibility of the witness who is a defence witness.
Judge Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid allowed the prosecution’s request.
Asked by lawyer Tiara Katrina Fuad to explain the contradiction in the statement, the witness said the MACC investigating officer had posed two different questions.
"When the MACC (investigating officer) asked whether during the meeting, YB Syed Saddiq ordered the withdrawal of RM1mil, I replied no, he did not order, this (answer) is the same as the statement (in court).
"When the MACC asked that maybe (there were discussions) asking Rafiq Hakim to withdraw RM1mil, I said I don’t know,” Ulya Aqamah said adding that his statement to the MACC was consistent with his statement in court.
Syed Saddiq, 30, is charged as the then Bersatu Youth wing or Armada chief, with abetting Rafiq Hakim who was entrusted with RM1 million in funds belonging to the wing, to commit criminal breach of trust by misappropriating the funds at CIMB Bank Bhd, Menara CIMB KL Sentral, Jalan Stesen Sentral 2 here on March 6, 2020.
The Johor Bahru native is also charged with misappropriating RM120,000 from the Maybank Islamic Bhd account belonging to Armada Bumi Bersatu Enterprise by causing Rafiq Hakim to dispose of the money at Malayan Banking Bhd, Jalan Pandan 3/6A, Taman Pandan Jaya here between April 8 and 21, 2018.
He also faces two counts of money-laundering, namely two transactions of RM50,000 each believed to be proceeds from unlawful activities, from his Maybank Islamic Bhd account into his Amanah Saham Bumiputera account at a bank in Jalan Persisiran Perling, Taman Perling, Johor Baru, on June 16 and 19, 2018.
The trial before Judge Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid continues on March 13.- Bernama
