FORMER POLITICAL SECRETARY SIGNED COVER LETTER SUPPORTING NEXUSCORP'S BID FOR PDRM SERVICE CONTRACT

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Bernama) -- The Sessions Court was informed today that Sayed Amir Muzzakkir Al Sayed Mohamad signed a cover letter to support Nexuscorp Group Sdn Bhd's bid for a contract to supply maintenance services and spare parts for the RMPNET system infrastructure of the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM).

Esther Douglas Udam, the former chief assistant secretary, Technical Section, Procurement Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN), testified that the letter, dated April 29, 2020, was addressed to the then Chief Secretary of KDN, Datuk Jamil Rakon. 

"Referring to this cover letter, it was signed by the then political secretary to the Home Minister, Sayed Amir Muzzakkir Al Sayed Mohamad.

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"Its purpose was to forward a letter from Nexuscorp Group Sdn Bhd, seeking the consideration of the then Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, to award the said company with the supply contract through the open tender process it had participated in," the witness said.

The sixth prosecution witness was reading her witness statement at the trial of Sayed Amir Muzzakkir, 42, who faces three corruption charges involving RM350,000.

Esther, who currently serves as the senior chief assistant secretary of the Ministry of Education’s Procurement Division, testified that the cover letter and the Nexuscorp Group letter concerning the pre-qualification open tender for the contract, dated April 23, 2020, were both signed by the company's managing director, Wan Azhar Mohamed Yusof.

"The purpose of the letter was to request Hamzah's support to entrust Nexuscorp Group with the award of this contract through the open tender it had participated in. I confirm that there was an instruction and a signature from Hamzah to the Chief Secretary (Jamil) for his consideration," she said.

Esther further testified that during a Procurement Board Meeting on Sept 17, 2020, the KDN Procurement Board agreed to recommend Nexuscorp Group's bid for the supply contract, with a total tender value of RM381,112,042.44, which was to be forwarded to the Ministry of Finance for final approval.

In related testimony, the seventh prosecution witness, R. Harshini, a Companies Commission of Malaysia assistant registrar, testified that based on the business profile of Nexuscorp Group, Wan Azhar and Ismuni Johari were registered directors of the company.

"The shareholders in Nexuscorp Group are Ismuni Johari and Wan Azhar Mohamed Yusof, each holding RM4,025,000," the witness said. 

Deputy public prosecutors Hazel Tan Jia Qi, Fatin Farhana Ismail and Atirah Mohd Azuarizanuddin appeared for the prosecution, while the accused was represented by counsels Md Yunos Shariff and Asmadi Hussin.

On May 23, 2024, Sayed Amir Muzzakkir was accused of two counts of accepting RM350,000 in cash from Wan Azhar as a reward for assisting the company in securing a RM381,112,042.44 tender for the "Maintenance Services and Supply of Spare Parts for RMPNet System Infrastructure" for PDRM. 

He allegedly committed the offences at the Yayasan Tanah Aku office in Solaris Dutamas on Dec 4, 2020, and Dec 16, 2020.

Sayed Amir Muzzakkir faces a further charge of soliciting an RM350,000 cash bribe from the same individual for a similar purpose at the Nexuscorp Group Sdn Bhd office in Section 7, Shah Alam, in early December 2020.

All the charges were brought under Section 16(a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher.

The trial before Judge Rosli Ahmad will resume on Nov 10. 

-- BERNAMA