KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 9 — DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng today claimed that the fresh criminal charges to be filed against him in Penang this Friday indicates possible political motivation, highlighting that they will come just a day before nomination day for the Sabah state election this Saturday.

Lim noted that he was informed today that two new charges will be brought against him in the courts in Butterworth, Penang this Friday, before saying that this would affect his schedule in assisting in the election campaign in Sabah. Lim would be required to be physically present in the court in Penang when the new charges are brought.

“This is truly a politically-motivated action by the MACC for having it a day before nomination day in Sabah,” he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur court complex, referring to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

When asked if he still plans to go to Sabah to aid in election campaigns after the Friday charges, Lim pointed out the timing of the fresh charges would affect his itinerary and arrangements for the campaign.

Advertisement

“Yes, but I cannot go for the nomination on Saturday. I think you all can make your own judgments lah why they choose Friday. The timing is exquisite on their side. They want to win Sabah at all costs, I mean that’s up to them, but I think it will definitely affect my preparations,” he said.

Lim, who is also the former Penang chief minister and ex-finance minister, also noted that he had seen news reports from last week that said he would be facing new charges, but said this was even before he was notified today of the upcoming charges.

“You all know I was in Sabah last week and when I was in Sabah, the news came out when I was in the interior of Sabah. We don’t know whether this is deliberate or not, but why leak it to the press, so this is very unprofessional and very unfair of the MACC,” he claimed.

Advertisement

“At that time I did not get any information from the MACC, but the MACC had leaked this information to the media. Clearly it is an act to disturb and inconvenience me when I am campaigning in the interior of Sabah, and to leak to the media without informing me shows that this is truly a politically-motivated act,” he also claimed.

Earlier today, the prosecution had informed the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur that Lim was served with a notice today to inform him that he would be charged with two counts under Section 403 of the Penal Code — covering the offence of dishonest misappropriation of property — this Friday in Butterworth, Penang.

Lim was present at the Kuala Lumpur court complex today for the mention of his two existing criminal cases that will be heard by the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur.

Lim however maintained that he was innocent of the existing corruption charges against him in relation to a RM6.3 billion project for roads and an undersea tunnel in Penang.

“As I mentioned before, until now the MACC has not been able to show or prove that bribes were received by me. That bribe is not in my bank account, not in my ownership in the form of cash. There are no rings, no watches, nothing that is related, so it shows that the charges are without basis.

“Because as I stressed, this project was done through open tender. How is it if open tender is decided not by me, but by the state procurement board that is chaired by the state government’s chief secretary and state government officers, doesn’t involve me,” he said of the decision over the tender.

Lim also suggested that the prosecution had acted hastily in bringing a charge against him on August 10, citing the prosecution’s mistakes in naming his ethnicity as Malay when he is a Chinese and also in putting in his wrong age in court documents.

Insisting that the charges against him are a “huge mistake” and politically-motivated as the alleged bribes he was accused of receiving allegedly could not be found or traced, Lim said he will seek justice and prove his innocence in court.

Earlier, the prosecution had told the Sessions Court that it would be making amendments to the court documents for the August 10 charge to have Lim listed as a Chinese with his actual age.

Currently, Lim is facing two cases — involving two separate charges brought on August 7 and August 10 — in the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur, and is also facing a separate charge —- brought on August 11 — at the Sessions Court in Butterworth, Penang for having allegedly used his position as Penang chief minister during the 2013-2016 period to obtain gratification of RM372,009 for his wife.

For the August 7 charge, Lim was accused of having in March 2011 allegedly soliciting a bribe amounting to 10 per cent of potential profits from Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli, as a reward for the proposed aiding of the latter’s company to be appointed to carry out the roads and undersea tunnel project in Penang.

For the August 7 charge, Lim was charged under Section 16 (a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009 — which covers the offence of soliciting, or receiving, or agreeing to receive for himself or anyone else, any gratification as an inducement or a reward. 

For the August 10 charge, Lim was accused of having allegedly used his position as Penang chief minister then between January 2011 and August 2017 to obtain a RM3.3 million bribe for helping Zafrul Ahmad’s company be appointed to carry out the RM6.3 billion roads and undersea tunnel project in Penang.

For both the August 7 and August 10 charges, the penalties upon conviction are a maximum 20 years' jail and a fine not less than five times the value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher.

The August 10 case was previously transferred from Penang to be heard before the same Sessions Court judge in Kuala Lumpur, while the prosecution also said today it intends to seek for the new charges this Friday to also be subsequently transferred to the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur.