KOTA KINABALU – Five individuals, comprising four company proprietors and one administrative assistant, entered not guilty pleas at the Special Corruption Court here on Wednesday against multiple charges concerning documentation for home renovation work under the Poorest Household Housing Program (PPRT).
The pleas were submitted following the presentation of charges separately before Special Corruption Court Judge Andi Razalijaya A Dadi.
The four company owners involved are Ashar Usman, 45; Shariff Wahya, 55; Kenidi Musa, 41; and Mohd Nur Musa, 42, while the fifth defendant is Aidah Mustapha, 54, an administrative officer at the Sabah State Agriculture Department.
Ashar and Shariff each face one charge under Section 18 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009.
Ashar is accused of submitting a purchase order valued at RM14,933 to the Director of GIATMARA Sabah in April 2021, allegedly containing false statements regarding renovation work on a PPRT residence.
Shariff is accused of submitting a purchase order valued at RM14,999 between February and March 2021, allegedly containing false statements concerning renovation work on a property under the same program.
Kenidi faces five charges under Section 18 of the MACC Act 2009 involving multiple invoices for PPRT home renovation work that allegedly failed to comply with established work specifications or bill of quantities (BQ).
Mohd Nur similarly faces five charges under the same section relating to several purchase orders for PPRT work that allegedly were not executed or did not conform to the established BQ.
Regarding Aidah, the charges involve multiple invoices for PPRT home renovation work, along with the alleged use of fraudulent documents presented as authentic.
Some charges against her are brought under Section 18 of the MACC Act 2009, while charges concerning the alleged use of forged documents are brought under Section 471 of the Penal Code.
The court approved Ashar’s bail at RM10,000 with a deposit of RM3,000 and one local guarantor, while Shariff was set a bail of RM10,000 with a deposit of RM1,000 and one guarantor.
Kenidi and Mohd Nur were each allowed bail of RM15,000 with deposits of RM5,000, while Aidah was set a bail of RM20,000 with a deposit of RM5,000.
Judge Andi Razalijaya also ordered all defendants to report to the nearest SPRM office once a month, surrender their passports to the court, and stay away from prosecution witnesses.
The prosecution was handled by SPRM Prosecutor Dzulkarnain Rousan Hasbi, while Aidah was represented by lawyer Jessica Ombou. The other four defendants had no legal representation.
The court set October 28 for case management.
