Kinabatangan MP Bung Moktar Radin denied direct involvement in Felcra Berhad’s RM150 million investment into Public Mutual unit trusts in 2015, other than inking his signature on documents for the Minister of Finance Incorporated’s (MOF Inc) reference.
Taking the stand in defending himself against three corruption charges today, Bung said the investment proposal was handled by the company’s then chief financial officer, Azmy Abdul Samah and his department.
He further said that Azmy had brought up the investment proposal in a meeting on Nov 24, 2014, where the latter had proposed that Felcra invest in cash management, fixed deposits and unit trusts that are worth RM300 million.
“I only advised him (Azmy) to bring the proposal paper to the board of directors meeting if he, or his department, believed that it would be beneficial to Felcra.
“The board of directors then asked Azmy (at the Nov 24 meeting) about investment risks, and they were satisfied with his explanation,” he said when reading out his witness statement before Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court judge Rosli Ahmad.
He added that the company then called the Public Mutual agent Norhaili Ahmad Mokhtar for further explanation on the investment, which was followed by the board’s collective decision for Azmy to pursue the proposal at MOF Inc before committing to any investment.
No objection
The investment proposals’ documents, Bung said, were prepared by Azmy with his officer’s assistance, with the former then signing the documents for them to be referred to the then finance minister II for reference and approval for RM100 million to RM150 million investments.
“On April 23, 2015, MOF Inc informed me, via a letter, that they did not have any objection to the proposal and required Felcra’s board of directors to ensure the management could implement continuous monitoring of the investment performance.
“This is to ensure that the risk mitigation can be implemented early, in the event of a significant downturn in the equity market.”
However, Bung said, he had met with Azmy and Norhaili on May 4, the same year, at the Intercontinental Hotel, where Norhaili informed him that Public Mutual cannot proceed with Felcra’s investment application due to some documents that did not comply with the unit trust agency and the Securities Commission’s specifications.
“(Following this), I informed Azmy to provide (the Public Mutual agents) with the requested documents, which are the board of directors’ meeting minutes that are relevant to the investment application.
“I (also) advised Azmy to prepare documents with accurate details and consistent with what was decided by the board in their meeting, and according to MOF Inc’s approval letter, (and) I left afterwards. It was a brief meeting.”
The Sabah Umno chief then emphasised that he had never directly instructed Azmy over the investment, or had any direct knowledge about what transpired outside the proposal presented by the latter in the board of directors meetings.
“I had (also) never discussed any payments or introduction fees (with Azmy and Norhaili at the meeting).”
In supporting his truth, Bung also emphasised that he had never asked for a bribe from Norhaili or her business partner Madhi Abd Hamid, as testified by the duo, under oath, during the prosecution’s case.
Bung’s defence
Bung, 66, is defending himself against three charges of accepting RM2.8 million bribes from Norhaili and Madhi on three separate occasions, to get Felcra’s approval to invest RM150 million in Public Mutual unit trust funds.
His wife, Zizie Izette A Samad, was charged with abetting him and was also ordered to enter her defence against the charges.
In the earlier parts of his evidence, Bung said Zizie had introduced Norhaili and Madhi to him at the Intercontinental Hotel around late 2013 or early 2014.
“Norhaili had told me then that she (and Madhi) wanted to get to know me, and they told me about unit trust products’ advantages, which were marketed by their agency.
“I politely informed her that I had no knowledge whatsoever about unit trust investments and asked her to contact or send an application letter to Felcra’s finance or investment officers, as they are more knowledgeable.”
He also said that Zizie had invited both Norhaili and Madhi to their Aidilfitri open house in 2014, where he may have introduced them to Azmy at the event, as he commonly would at his personal events.
Bung also told the court that he had no direct knowledge of his wife’s financial status, including their savings, investments or source of income.
“It has been an understanding between my wives and I, since we got married until now, that her money is hers and I do not interfere.”
He also said that he did not know about the RM2.8 million that was transferred into Zizie’s accounts on June 12 and 17 in 2015.
The trial continues tomorrow. - Mkini
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