This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on February 20, 2020

KUALA LUMPUR: Datasonic Group Bhd deputy managing director (MD) Chew Ben Ben told the High Court here yesterday that an alleged RM6 million bribe the company gave to former deputy prime minister (DPM) Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in 2017 was in fact a political donation for his Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition government.

Chew said he would not have proposed the political donation had Ahmad Zahid not been the then DPM and home affairs minister.

“I want to state if he had not held the two positions (DPM and home affairs minister), I would not have proposed that Datuk Hanifah give the RM6 million donation to Barisan Nasional through Zahid,” he said in his witness statement yesterday, adding that the donation was for “long-term prospects”.

According to Chew, the donation was made because Datasonic Technologies Sdn Bhd (DTSB) director Datuk Abu Hanifah Noordin felt grateful that the company had been listed and wanted to show its support with the contribution.

“The reason we made that donation is because Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid was the BN vice-president, [and] Hanifah felt grateful.

“He felt grateful to the BN at that time for a stable economy and a peaceful country. [On] the long-term [prospects], [it] was because of the nation’s stability in politics, he was happy with the government of the day.

“He is a businessman, we want politics to be stable so the economy can prosper,” he explained after Deputy Public Prosecutor Gan Peng Kun asked him to clarify what he meant by “long-term prospects”.

Chew testified that after his meeting with Ahmad Zahid in April 2017 in Putrajaya, he was led to believe the latter needed money for the 14th general election (GE14).

At that meeting, Chew offered a donation to Ahmad Zahid through Hanifah.

“I asked how much he (Ahmad Zahid) needed for the Barisan Nasional and whether Hanifah and I can make a political donation.

“[Ahmad] Zahid then told me that it was up to me as to how much I intended to give the BN,” he said.

Chew testified that Ahmad Zahid had asked him to issue a cheque to a Maybank account owned by Lewis & Co instead of Umno or BN’s accounts.

He told Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah that upon informing Hanifah the next day about the donation, Hanifah agreed to donate RM6 million through Ahmad Zahid for political purposes.

Chew, the 34th prosecution witness in Ahmad Zahid’s trial, said he advised Hanifah to use his own funds — and for the cheque’s recipient to be left blank — because Datasonic Group Bhd could not issue the funds as it would require the board of directors’ approval.

On April 25, 2017, Hanifah passed two cheques to Chew, one was for RM5 million and another RM1 million. Chew said the cheques were under Hanifah’s own company Sarana Kencana Sdn Bhd and the recipients’ names were kept blank.

He then personally handed the two cheques to Ahmad Zahid at the latter’s residence in Putrajaya.

Cross-examined by Ahmad Zahid’s lawyer Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Zainal, Chew said Ahmad Zahid did not ask him for the funds.

Ahmad Zaidi: [Ahmad] Zahid never told you that the BN needed political funds?

Chew: Never.

Chew said he took it upon himself to propose the donation be made to Ahmad Zahid. He also defended himself saying the money was not his as it came from Hanifah.

The charge sheet against Ahmad Zahid states he allegedly received a bribe from Chew via two cheques worth RM5 million and RM1 million issued by Sarana Kencana to a Maybank account owned by Lewis & Co.

Ahmad Zahid, as then home affairs minister, is said to have facilitated DTSB’s appointment under a five-year contract, through direct negotiations at the home affairs ministry, to provide 12.5 million chips to the Immigration Department for Malaysian passports.

Chew stressed the donation was not made to facilitate the contract’s award by Ahmad Zahid in 2015.

Ahmad Zahid, also Bagan Datuk member of Parliament, faces 47 charges — 12 for criminal breach of trust, eight for bribery and 27 for money laundering — involving millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.