PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli testified today on why he lodged a report on the allegations of graft in the Selangor state government, but did not do so for the alleged misappropriations in Mara Inc.

He told the Kuala Lumpur High Court that in the case of Selangor, PKR decided it should be held to a higher level of accountability compared to the previous scandal he exposed.

Hence, a report was lodged with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on May 30.

On the other hand, in the allegations of misappropriation in Mara Inc’s property purchases in Australia, Rafizi told the court that the authorities had acted swiftly on the matter.

Among others, he said this came in the form of a statement from Mara chairperson Annuar Musa that the council was suspending several Mara Inc officials and was taking steps to facilitate investigations.

"So in this particular case, there was no report made because action is steadily being taken by the authorities," the Pandan lawmaker told the court.

Rafizi was testifying under cross-examination by lawyer M Reza Hassan in the defamation suit against him by Umno Youth deputy chief Khairul Azwan Harun.

The case is being presided by High Court Judge S Nantha Balan.

Questioned by Reza, the PKR leader confirmed he did not lodge a report with the police or MACC regarding alleged wrongdoing in Mara Inc.

However, Rafizi denied he opted not to lodge a report because he was unsure whether Khairul was involved in the scandal, although he conceded that the latter was not a board member or shareholder in Mara Inc.

Four properties

Previously in June last year, reports surfaced in the Australian press alleging that Mara Inc had bought four properties in Melbourne at inflated prices, and money was channelled back to Malaysia as kickbacks.

Rafizi alleged that one of the properties that Mara Inc purchased, at 746 Swanston Street, was linked to Umno Youth’s leadership. In doing so, he highlighted that Khairul was the chairperson of a company where another director also served on the board of the company that held the property.

Khairul had denied having any involvement in the purchases and sued Rafizi over the matter, resulting in today’s hearing.

In an unrelated development last month, Rafizi revealed that he had received complaints claiming that money and women had been requested during dealings with the Selangor government.

PKR’s political bureau told him to file the evidence he had at hand to the MACC, which the MP complied.

Meanwhile in today’s hearing, Khairul Azwan also took to the stand as witness.

He said the statements made by Rafizi were directly defamatory to him and not merely through innuendo.

During cross-examination by Rafizi’s counsel William Leong, the Selanyang MP asked a range of questions regarding Khairul’s work and political background.

Reza objected to this and questioned the relevance of the questions, but Nantha Balan allowed the questions after Leong explained that this was necessary to establish Khairul’s financial capabilities, since he claimed to have suffered damage due to Rafizi’s claims.

Among others, Khairul was quizzed on how much he had spent on campaigning to become the Umno deputy chief, but he said he was unsure because he was not keeping track.

“But the flight to Sabah alone would costs RM600, and from then on I need to rent a car and fill the tank,” he told the court.

Khairul’s cross examination continues tomorrow.