Funds channelled to Khairy’s Rembau Umno division, ex-UKSB director tells Zahid visa trial

A former director of Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) told the Shah Alam High Court today that former youth and sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin had received contributions from his company although the funds were not directly given.

Wan Quoris Shah Wan Abdul Ghani, 42, said that amounts of between RM50,000 and RM200,000 were given to Khairy for political aid, humanitarian and disaster assistance.

He said the contributions were not given to Khairy directly, but channelled through the Rembau Umno division as Khairy, the former Umno Youth chief, had been the division’s deputy chief at the time.

Another former UKSB director, Harry Lee Vui Khun, previously told the court that the initials “KJ” had appeared in the company’s ledger book along with the word “bomoh”.

Lee was the 15th prosecution witness in the corruption trial of former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The UKSB ledger, also known in the trial as Book 555, contained records of the payments made by the company to several individuals between 2014 and 2018.

When asked by deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin during examination-in-chief about how he had helped Khairy, Wan Quoris said political assistance was not given only at the division level.

“It was also given at the national level because he was a national politician,” he said.

“For example, if a disaster struck and so on, I would help in humanitarian aid programmes. If there was a by-election, I would help too,” Wan Quoris, known as a close friend of Khairy, added.

The 16th prosecution witness also said he had given Khairy financial aid according to need, and not on a monthly basis.

“I did not give the contributions directly,” he said. “I managed it myself, meaning that if there was a programme that needed aid, I could control in terms of financial use.

“Of course, he (Khairy) had nothing to do with this (overseas visa contract), and there was no big allocation for him.

“But the VLN was related to the home ministry, and Zahid was the minister in charge at the time. He was also the Umno deputy president, so I think his responsibilities were bigger,” he said.

Zahid, 69, faces 33 charges of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million (RM42 million) from UKSB as an inducement for himself in his capacity as a civil servant and then home minister to extend the contract of the company as the operator of the one-stop centre in China and the VLN system, as well as to maintain the agreement to supply VLN integrated system paraphernalia to the same company by the home ministry.

On another seven counts, Zahid was charged as home minister with obtaining for himself S$1,150,000, RM3 million, €15,000 and US$15,000 in cash from the same company in connection with his official work.

He is charged with committing all of the offences at Seri Satria, Presint 16, Putrajaya, and Country Heights, Kajang, between October 2014 and March 2018.

The trial continues before judge Mohd Yazid Mustafa.