Seven tok batin (village heads) were given RM300 each three days before the May 9 polling day, which was witnessed by Pahang Menteri Besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and Cameron Highlands MP C Sivarraajh, the Election Court heard today.

Harun Siden, who was among the seven tok batin, said this when he gave evidence as the second witness for M Manogaran, the DAP candidate for the Cameron Highlands parliamentary seat. 

Harun said the money came from Sivarraajh, who gave it to another person who then distributed the cash to the village heads.

"Wan Rosdy and Sivarraajh took a helicopter and landed near Kampung Tual, Pos Sinderut to attend a sukaneka (sports carnival) on May 6, this year.

"When the money was given, Wan Rosdy and Sivarraajh were also present," he said, adding that the money was an inducement for the Orang Asli to vote for BN.

Harun was responding to questions from Manogaran's lawyer K Shanmuga.

The tok batin also told the court he heard that Wan Rosdy and Sivarraajh also gave an individual by the name of Achah a sum of RM9,300, from which Orang Asli villagers received RM50 before polling day.

"I accepted the additional RM50 (from Ahchah), and was given a receipt with a serial number stipulating the polling centre, with the dacing (BN) symbol.

"Sivarraajh told us that he is young and could work hard for the development of the Orang Asli community. Wan Rosdy told us 'makan BN, mandi BN, tidur BN (eat, bathe and sleep BN)," he told the court.

Wan Rosdy is the assemblyperson for Jelai, where Harun lives.

Harun also testified that Wan Rosdy and Sivarraajh (photo) came to his village twice during the campaign period, on May 3 and 6, which was when he received the money.

The witness also said in response to a question from Sivarraajh's lawyer Mohd Hafarizam Harun that he took photos of their helicopter with his tablet.

'First time money given'

Harun, 42, who has served as a tok batin for two years, said that this was the first time that money was given out before an election.

"The money was given during election time, previously no money was given," he said, adding that he is paid RM800 monthly as a tok batin.

Sivarraajh's lawyer also asked Harun if he noticed increasing support for Manogaran in Kampung Tual, and which candidate he himself voted for.

Harun only replied by saying that a person's vote is confidential, which caused the public gallery to break out in laughter. When pressed further, however, the tok batin stressed that he is not a member of any political party.

He also noted that he had spent the money given to him, although he knew it was wrong. "I used it to purchase rice and other necessities, and spent the rest of the amount for the villagers," he said.

Despite numerous challenges by Hafarizam, Harun stuck to his testimony that the money originated from Wan Rosdy and Sivarraajh, and denied that Manogaran had given out any money in his many visits to the village over the past five years.

'Bribery rampant'

Earlier, Manogaran (right in photo) told the court that bribery and corrupt practices by BN were rampant among the Orang Asli community there.

This, he said, prevented him from obtaining votes, which in turn affected the outcome of the GE14 results for Cameron Highlands. 

Manogaran obtained 9,710 votes in the polls, losing out to Sivarraajh by just 597 votes.

He alleged that Sivarraajh and Wan Rosdy had either directly or through their campaign workers bribed voters, with thousands of ringgit given out to village heads and Orang Asli during the election campaign.

Manogaran, the Pahang DAP deputy chair, claimed in his petition list that the Orang Asli were given between RM30 to RM1,000 each, while tok batin received RM500 each.

"Besides this, the Orang Asli voters also received RM50 and a smartphone SIM card," Manogaran said.

Under cross-examination by Sivarraajh's lawyer, Manogaran dismissed the possibility that the giveaways were done without the winning candidate's knowledge.

He agreed, however, that the SIM cards and RM50 were given by the Rural and Regional Development Ministry to the Orang Asli with Sivarraajh's knowledge.

Besides Manogaran and Harun, some 35 Orang Asli are scheduled to testify during the petition hearing, fixed for two weeks from today.