SHAH ALAM: Former director of Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) told the High Court here on Thursday (June 9) that the financial assistance given to Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was aimed at strengthening the company’s position as a Home Ministry’s contractor.

       Wan Quoris Shah Wan Abdul Ghani, 42, said with the assistance, the company did not just secure support from the former deputy prime minister, but also managed to reduce competitive disruption from other companies running the same business.

       "Datuk Seri Zahid asked for assistance, so we gave him assistance. What was important to us was to ensure that our business was not disrupted since there were several other companies lobbying for the job that we were doing.”

       Wan Quoris Shah said this in his witness statement during the examination-in-chief by Deputy Public Prosecutor Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin.

       The witness said without Ahmad Zahid’s help and support, the company would not have been able to retain or extend the contracts relating to the Foreign Visa System (VLN).

       Wan Quoris Shah also admitted that the company had given cash to Ahmad Zahid on several occasions.

       "The cash was given after he (Ahmad Zahid) asked UKSB to make a political donation for Umno. He did not ask openly, but by the way he spoke, I understood that he was expecting a monetary contribution from UKSB.

       "The contribution made by UKSB every month was in cash, all in Singapore dollars. This was what Datuk Seri (Ahmad Zahid) requested from us,” he said.

       Earlier, the 15th prosecution witness VK Lee, who is also a former director of UKSB, also told the court that from 2014 to 2018, the company had sent cash in Singapore dollars to Ahmad Zahid in connection with the VLN contracts.

       Meanwhile, Wan Quoris said it was normal for businesses to lobby government officials for contracts.

       "For UKSB, our purpose of meeting with Datuk Seri Zahid (Ahmad Zahid) at that time was to strengthen our position as the sole contractor to supply VLN system for the ministry so that no one can disrupt UKSB’s business,” he said.

       Ahmad Zahid, 69, is facing 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 the then home minister to extend the contract of the company as the operator of the One-Stop Centre (OSC) 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.

       For another seven counts, Ahmad Zahid was charged as home minister to have obtained for himself S$1.15mil, RM3mil, €15,000 and US$15,000 in cash from the same company in connection with his official work.

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

       The trial before Judge Datuk Mohd Yazid Mustafa continues on June 13.- Bernama