KUALA LUMPUR: A key prosecution witness in the ongoing trial involving the Penang undersea tunnel project said he had engaged a middleman to channel a RM2mil bribe to former Penang chief minister Lim Guan Eng because it would pose a high risk if he had done it himself.
Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli told the Sessions Court that he did not want to take the risk as he was being watched by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
The Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd director was testifying during impeachment proceedings into his conflicting statements made in the ongoing trial and another Shah Alam case involving businessman G. Gnanaraja.
Zarul Ahmad said he decided to engage Gnanaraja after Lim had told him to use an intermediary to deliver money to him to avoid detection.
“I was worried about keeping too much cash as I was being watched by the MACC at that time,” he said yesterday.
He added that the money he had wanted to give Lim was part of the 10% cut from the profit of the project that would be awarded to his company.
Replying to questions by deputy public prosecutor Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin about his message exchanges with Gnanaraja from the Shah Alam case on Aug 17, 2017, Zarul Ahmad said Gnanaraja had celebrated when he was chosen as the middleman to deliver the RM2mil.
Wan Shaharuddin: This message, “Fantastic Dato. Penang CM done ah, Dato?” Whose message was it?
Zarul Ahmad: It was Gnanaraja’s message.
Wan Shaharuddin: Why did Gnanaraja say that?
Zarul Ahmad: Gnanaraja was waiting for Lim Guan Eng’s decision on whether to use him as a middleman.
Wan Shaharuddin: Why Gnanaraja had to ask “Penang CM done ah, Dato?” after saying “Fantastic Dato”?
Zarul Ahmad: He wanted to find out if Lim Guan Eng had given the clearance to engage him as the middleman.
When probed further about Gnanaraja’s insistence, Zarul Ahmad said the former was “anxiously waiting” for Lim’s reply.
He also said he had suggested Gnanaraja because the businessman was from Barisan Nasional and he knew the then prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak well.
“I told Lim Guan Eng that Gnanaraja was the most suitable person for the job. Lim Guan Eng agreed with my suggestion and told me he would soon come to Kuala Lumpur to meet Gnanaraja,” he said.
He agreed with Wan Shaharuddin’s suggestion that before his meeting with Lim, he had already informed Gnanaraja about the matter, as he was confident Lim would agree to Gnanaraja being the intermediary.
“When he found out later that Lim Guan Eng had agreed to the middleman arrangement, he was thrilled because he got to be friends with the leader,” he said.
Zarul Ahmad also said that code words were used to describe the bribe in his text message exchanges with Gnanaraja to prevent information leaks and tracking.
Zarul Ahmad was referring to his message to Gnanaraja asking him to meet the next day to pass some “chocolate” to the “big boss”.
He confirmed that “chocolate” referred to RM4mil, of which RM2mil was allegedly for Lim.
Previously, Zarul Ahmad testified in court that he had paid Gnanaraja another RM2mil to get close to Najib.
Wan Shaharuddin: Why didn’t you say payment of money instead of chocolate?
Zarul Ahmad: I was afraid that this conversation would be screenshot. I used WhatsApp to call Gnanaraja to talk about cash payments.
Lim, 63, is facing an amended charge of using his position as then Penang chief minister to solicit RM3.3mil in bribes as an inducement to assist Zarul Ahmad in securing the undersea tunnel project worth RM6.34bil.
Lim allegedly committed the offence at the Penang Chief Minister’s Office, Level 28, Komtar, George Town, between January 2011 and August 2017.
In the second amended charge, Lim is accused of soliciting a 10% profit from the company as gratification to secure the project.
The offence was allegedly committed near The Gardens Hotel, Lingkaran Syed Putra, Mid Valley City here, in March 2011.
Lim, who is DAP chairman and Bagan MP, faces two further charges of causing two plots of land worth RM208.8mil, belonging to the Penang government, to be disposed of to two companies linked to the project.
The trial before judge Azura Alwi resumes on Oct 2.
