KOTA KINABALU, July 6 ― Already under investigation by police and anti-graft authorities, former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman is now fending off an RM400 million lawsuit filed by a man accusing him of misappropriating funds from Yayasan Sabah.
Musa’s lawyer Tengku Fuad Ahmad said that the writ was “fundamentally flawed, vexatious, frivolous and scandalous”, politically motivated and “designed to embarrass and scandalise” his client.
“It goes without saying that our client wholly denies the preposterous allegations contained in the writ and states indefatigably that neither he nor any officers of Yayasan Sabah have been involved in any breach of trust, let alone one involving RM400 million.
“Kota Kinabalu is a small town and everyone knows that my firm acts for Musa. So I wonder why the plaintiff chose to publish the writ in the newspaper by way of substituted service? Was this designed to simply humiliate my client?
“I further observe that the writ seems to have been drafted by a lawyer, albeit one of indeterminate ability. Who are the hidden hands behind the Plaintiff?” said Fuad in a statement when contacted.
Fuad said that he will be responding to the writ of summons as instructed and in respect of the court process, “even when it appears to have been abused by a vexatious plaintiff,” he said.
Yesterday, a legal notice was published in The Borneo Post notifying Musa of the writ of RM400 million against him by the plaintiff, a Zulkifli Kassim from Kampung Bobot, Kota Belud, and required him respond in court within 10 days of the advertisement.
According to the notice, judgement may be made against Musa in default if no appearance is made.
According to court documents, the plaintiff who claims to be a beneficiary of the foundation alleged that Musa, who is chairman of Yayasan Sabah, committed a breach of trust by pocketing at least US$101 million (RM408 million) from the foundation’s timber concessions.
“The defendant did commit a breach of trust by misappropriating/pocketing at least US$101 million USD of the income of the Sabah Foundation generated from the granting of timber concessions to person connected by business to him,” said Zulkifli in his statement of claim.
He said that news reports and “investigative documents” from Hong Kong said that on August 16 in 2006, two companies ― Wayco Enterprises Ltd and Hillywellnc ― paid US$4.04 million to a UBS account which made a series of deposits into Musa’s personal bank account in Hong Kong.
On August 22 the same year, the same amount was deposited by the two companies into the Musa’s trustee, who was holding a letter indicating that he was holding this money on trust for Musa.
From 2006 onwards, timber companies deposited money through companies housed in the British Virgin Islands, following the same pattern: a logging company pays a deposit to an account of a shell company called “Zenique Investments Ltd, and then the company makes a deposit a few days later into another shell company called CTF International, under one Michael Chia, also known as Chia Tien Fong. These funds would eventually flow to Musa’s trustee.
Zulkifli alleged that the total amount of RM400 million today was raised from timber concessions and should have been channeled to the beneficiaries of the foundation.
“Instead of giving this income amounting to US$101 million raised from timber concessions to the beneficiaries including the plaintiff, the Defendant pocketed these funds himself.
“As a result of the Defendant’s breach of trust, the plaintiff did suffer loss and damage of being deprived of these funds.
The suit was claiming from Musa “on behalf of the people of Sabah” ― RM 400 million with eight per cent interest per year until the date of satisfaction and costs.
