Elegant Advisory Sdn Bhd former chairperson Hasan Ayoub, who was implicated in an election merchandise scandal, claims he is innocent and blames the company's top executives instead.

Contacted today, he claimed the executives disregarded a decision made by the board of directors pertaining to the placement of orders for posters and other campaign material for Barisan Nasional.

He was responding to a malaysiakini exclusive yesterday, in which the suppliers claimed that BN owed them some RM100 million for the merchandise supplied for the recently concluded general election. They said that they had supplied the merchandise through Hasan.

Hasan, who claimed he was sacked from the company after elections, said that the executives placed the orders even before the company held any negotiations with the state Umno and BN liaison committees on the matter.

"Their actions were clearly against the decision of the board of directors that we have to first identify reliable suppliers, visit their premises to make sure that they can deliver and only then we submit the proposal to state Umno and BN offices for approval.

"As such, don't hold me responsible for their actions or the outstanding money that they owe the suppliers. Furthermore, they have sacked me and it is up to new management on how to handle the matter," he said.

No down payment

According to him, the executives also allegedly flouted standard procedures which require the company to make a down-payment or deposit to the suppliers before the goods are delivered.

"This was not done. But what happen then was, they (the executives) told me that they had placed the orders and the goods were already coming...," he said.

Hasan said he was surprised when informed that the suppliers had delivered their goods to the company even before a down-payment was made.

He said the goods were stored in a 'warehouse' located in a shoplot, a stone's throw away from Elegant Advisory's office in Setapak, Kuala Lumpur.

The suppliers told malayiaskini that the merchandise were then placed under tents erected outside the warehouse and officials from BN branches collected them after stamping the delivery orders, which the suppliers thought would be sent to the BN headquarters for payment.

Asked if Elegant Advisory would be paid for the merchandise taken by BN officials, Hasan replied: "Obviously they (BN officials) were getting the stuff for free lah ... "

According to the suppliers, Elegant Advisory told them that it had secured a lucrative 'government contract' to supply the ruling coalition with campaign paraphernalia for the 2004 elections.

To be part of the 'lucrative' deal, the suppliers allegedly paid RM15,000 each to the company - a normal practise according to those involved in the procurement of government contracts.

Asked about this, Hasan said he was not aware about the suppliers paying any money, but added that if such a thing had occurred, the "money would have been pocketed by those who collected it".

On why he was sacked from the company, he quipped: "Probably they see a lot of money there..."

Several suppliers claimed they met with Hasan numerous times before and after the 2004 general election after no payment was made as promised by him.