Businessman Adam Radlan charged with accepting RM500,000 bribe, soliciting 3.5%-7% of RM47.8m Jana Wibawa project

Friday 19 Apr 2024

KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 21): Businessman Adam Radlan Adam Muhammad claimed trial in the Sessions Court here on Tuesday (Feb 21), after he was charged with soliciting and accepting bribes of RM500,000 and between 3.5% and 7% of a RM47.8 million road works project in connection with the Jana Wibawa programme, which was established to help Bumiputera contractors.

Adam pleaded not guilty before Sessions Court judge Suzana Hussin after two charges were read out to him.

For the first charge, Adam allegedly solicited a bribe amount of 3.5% to 7% of the total amount of a road works project worth RM47.8 million from Mat Jusoh Mamat, who is the managing director of MIE Infrastructure & Energy Sdn Bhd.

The bribe was for Adam to get an approval letter from the government to help MIE secure the project under the Jana Wibawa programme.

For the second charge, Adam allegedly received RM500,000 in his CIMB bank account from Jusoh Mamat as an inducement for helping MIE secure the road works project from Jalan Sg Adam to Kg Banat, Perlis.

Both charges are framed under Section 16(a)(a) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, and punishable under Section 24 of the same Act, which carries up to 20 years' jail and a fine of not less than five times the amount of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher, upon conviction.

The judge set bail at RM120,000, and ordered Adam to surrender his passport to the court.

Adam, who is also Bersatu's deputy division chief for Segambut, was represented by Datuk Rajan Navaratnam, while the deputy public prosecutor was Farah Yasmin Salleh.

The judge set March 22 for case management.

Former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was in attendance together with opposition leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin and other top brass of Bersatu.

Jana Wibawa, or Program Jana Ekonomi Pemerkasaan Kontraktor Bumiputera Berwibawa, was a scheme to improve the capacity of Bumiputera contractors in the construction industry, as well as to expedite project execution to spur the nation's economic recovery post Covid-19.

The MACC had launched investigations in the wake of allegations that contractors chosen under the programme had deposited a total of RM300 million into the party accounts of Bersatu. The agency had frozen Bersatu's bank accounts to facilitate its probe.

Muhyiddin was summoned by the MACC last week to record his statement regarding Jana Wibawa. It was reported that Muhyiddin was among individuals being investigated by the agency over the matter, but he has claimed that he was called in to give his statement and not as a suspect.

International Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz, who served as the finance minister under Muhyiddin, on Monday also confirmed that the MACC had summoned him up over Jana Wibawa.

On Feb 15, the government announced that RM5.7 billion worth of rural development projects under the Jana Wibawa scheme had been postponed to facilitate a review of whether they were awarded in accordance with the procurement process and governance requirements set by the Treasury.

Edited BySurin Murugiah

Text Size