Rosmah: I did not ‘shoo away’ Jepak Holdings execs from my home because manners maketh PM’s wife

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 — Bound by Islamic traditions and Eastern values of hospitality and common decency, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor testified in High Court that she could not have asked a Jepak Holdings executive and his business partner to leave her home despite feeling uncomfortable in their presence during a meeting at her Langgak Duta residence sometime in January or February of 2016.  

In her testimony, Rosmah had referred to statements given by independent consultant Rayyan Radzwil Abdullah last year, where he stated that the then prime minister’s wife did not evict him or his business partner, Jepak Holding Managing Director Saidi Abang Samsudin, when they offered a sum of 10 per cent of the project value as political donation to Datuk Seri Najib Razak, through her.

The question to Rayyan was asked during cross examination by senior deputy public prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram, who had pressed the consultant on Rosmah’s conduct during their meeting at the time.

“Yang Arif, as a Malay Muslim woman and an eastern lady, I am well versed in traditions and act of conduct that I need to abide to. It is part of me and the Malaysian society in general. What's more, as the wife of the prime minister, I have to constantly display manners and good conduct that befits the first lady of the country.

“In this regard, I would like to respond to the oral question during Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram to PW17 (Saidi) that whether I have asked PW16 (Rayyan) and PW17 out of my house when PW17 made the offer of political donation and PW17 said ‘no’.

“I would like to say here that this question did not reflect the high standard of manners that is expected from society to me, as the first lady of the country at the time. Maybe that is Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram’s conduct when he does not like any individual, he would chase them away.

“As I have said earlier as the wife of the prime minister, I am an individual that always has to maintain good conduct and manners,” she said.

Despite not asking Rayyan and Saidi to leave, Rosmah insisted that she had ended the meeting “abruptly” and vehemently denied that she had received any offer of “political donation” during the first meeting with both men.

“Even though I have not chased PW17 and PW16 from my home, I have ended the meeting immediately, in fact the meeting did not even last five minutes and during the first meeting, I have never received any offer of ‘political donation’. The culture of shooing away guest is not a manner that is practice by the wife of the number one leader of the country and a renowned politician, as well as Malaysian society in general, because it gave the interpretation that people who evict (guest) do not have good manners as well as proper family education,” she said.

Rosmah also stated that she did not expect to meet Saidi and Rayyan at the time as she was exercising previously and had met them in her exercise attire.

She also stated that it was Datuk Rizal Mansor (PW21), also present at the meeting, who had set up the meeting between Rayyan, Saidi and herself.

Rosmah also denied that she had requested for an offer of 10 per cent or any value of the purported solar hybrid project during the meet and vehemently denied statements by Rayyan and Rizal that she had engaged in any means to solicit bribes either directly or indirectly through a proxy.

Rosmah also recalled that Najib, during his tenure as the prime minister, had instructed her not to entertain any request from any parties asking aid to attain government contracts.

As such she also denied aiding either Rayyan or Saidi to garner the support of her husband in any way to help both men attain government contracts.