Muhyiddin trial: Nepturis director says no deception in shareholding records

The High Court in Kuala Lumpur today heard that there was no deception in the information submitted to the Companies Commission of Malaysia (SSM) regarding the shareholding structure of Nepturis Sdn Bhd.

The prosecution's 13th witness, Nepturis director and shareholder Aliza Abd Malek, 47, said this during cross-examination by defence counsel Amer Hamzah Arshad at the trial of former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who is facing four charges of abuse of power and three counts of money laundering linked to the Jana Wibawa programme.

Amer: About the 30 percent shareholding held by TC Lian (Lian Tan Chuan), this information was not disclosed to SSM. Correct?

Aliza: Lian gave Rizman (Rizman Akum Khan) and me the opportunity to take over Nepturis. According to SSM records, Lian transferred his entire 100 percent shareholding to Rizman and me.

Amer then asked whether the failure to provide SSM with accurate and complete information amounted to deception, to which Aliza replied that it did not.

Aliza said although she and Rizman were the company's directors and shareholders, Lian was the individual who had injected capital into Nepturis.

Earlier, in her witness statement, Aliza said that in 2018, she and Rizman took over Nepturis from Lian and were appointed directors and shareholders, each holding a 50 percent stake in the company.

The witness said although Lian's name did not appear in Nepturis' corporate records, he held a 30 percent interest in the company, a fact known to both her and Rizman.

Aliza said the registration of her and Rizman's names with SSM was valid despite the capital injection by Lian, adding that no legal action had been taken against her, Rizman, Lian or Nepturis.

‘No interest’

In response to deputy public prosecutor Noralis Mat on Lian's role in the company, Aliza said she had known him for a long time and that he had given her and Rizman the opportunity to improve their lives by managing the company.

“He entrusted Rizman and me to manage Nepturis. There were no restrictions on Lian being involved in the company's administration. However, Rizman and I had the authority to sign all financial documents, while Lian was kept informed of all developments in the company,” she said.

Aliza agreed with Amer's suggestion that Muhyiddin had no interest in Nepturis throughout his tenure as prime minister.

Amer: The only individuals connected to Nepturis are you, Rizman and Lian. Correct?

Aliza: Correct.

When asked by Noralis whether Muhyiddin was aware of Nepturis' ownership structure, Aliza said she had no knowledge of the matter and that only Lian could answer the question.

The witness also told the court that apart from the North Klang district police headquarters project in Selangor, Nepturis had also been awarded three other projects, namely the National Disease Control Centre in Negeri Sembilan, the Central Spine Road project in Kerteh and a school project in Bukit Petiti, Kuala Terengganu.

Salary and bonuses

In response to Amer's question on her salary when she joined Nepturis, Aliza said she received a basic monthly salary of RM6,500 as a director, a RM6,000 allowance and a two-month annual bonus.

The court also heard testimony today from the 14th prosecution witness, senior supervising civil engineer Ir Saipullah Husin, 58.

Muhyiddin, 79, who was prime minister and Bersatu president at the time, is facing four charges under Section 23(1) of the MACC Act 2009 for allegedly abusing his position to obtain RM225.3 million in gratification for the party in connection with the Jana Wibawa programme between March 2020 and August 2021.

He also faces three charges under Section 4(1)(b), read together with Section 87(1), of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 involving RM200 million allegedly deposited into Bersatu's bank accounts between February 2021 and July 2022.

The offences carry maximum prison terms of 20 years and 15 years respectively, in addition to fines.

- Bernama

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