Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil today said Umno leaders only asked her to resign as Minister for Women, Family and Community Delevopment in response to defamatory statements by PKR’s Rafizi Ramli and Zuraida Kamaruddin.
The Wanita Umno chief (picture) was asked by counsel Ranjit Singh during cross-examination in her defamation case against the PKR duo today if she felt defamed by statements made by Kinabatangan MP Bung Mokhtar Radin, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed and minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz to the press, which she answered: “No”.
“I did not feel defamed as (Bung Mokhtar) was acting as a consequence of the defamation by the defendants,” Shahrizat said.
Earlier this year, Dr Mahathir told Shahrizat not to “love” her post to the point of refusing to part with it even if this were to be good for Umno.
The former prime minister, who late last year expressed support for Shahrizat’s resignation over the National Feedlot Centre (NFC) scandal, pointed out to the senator that she would eventually have to part with her post.
The former minister had appeared to gain rousing support from both the Youth and her Wanita wing of Umno during the party’s annual general meeting last year after she denied any wrongdoing in the NFC scandal.
Despite this, other leaders apart from Dr Mahathir, such as Umno MP Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin, had called for the women, family and community development minister to step down instead of “troubling us.”
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz had also said earlier this year that NFCorp, which is run by Shahrizat’s family, had breached its loan conditions for the NFC with the federal government.
She eventually relinquished her Cabinet post this year after her senatorship was not renewed.
PKR has repeatedly attacked the project with various allegations surrounding the “loans” of over RM84 million given by the NFC to companies owned by Shahrizat’s family, including RM13.8 million for two luxury condominiums in Bangsar.
Shahrizat, who is the wife of NFCorp chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, had been linked to the scandal by PKR because of her husband’s position, and their three children’s directorships in the same firm.
Mohamed Salleh was charged with criminal breach of trust and violating the Companies Act in relation to RM49 million in federal funds given to NFCorp on March 12.
The 64-year-old was charged under the Penal Code relating to CBT for misappropriating RM9,758,140 from NFCorp’s funds to purchase two condominium units at the One Menerung complex in Bangsar for the National Meat and Livestock Corporation (NMLC) on December 1 and December 4, 2009.
He was also charged with transferring RM40 million of NFCorp’s funds to the NMLC between May 6 and November 16, 2009.
He was further charged in both cases for using the said funds without any approval from company’s annual general meeting, which is an offence the Companies Act.
If found guilty, he faces between two and 20 years’ imprisonment, whipping, and a fine for the offences under the Penal Code.
Mohamad Salleh also faces a five-year jail term or RM30,000 fine for the charges proffered under the Companies Act.
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You are just trying to distract the attention and focus of the rakyats from NFC by initiating this suit against PKR members. Why quit if you are so resolute that you DID NO WRONG, SEE NO WRONG, HEAR NO WRONG SAID NO WRONG ?
Your conscience is clear and you sleep well at night ? Then you should have stayed on in the cabinet !
She remained defiantly unabashed. What else does she want to prove? Even her colleagues showed disdain towards her.
what! only 20 years jail ? what about the money? we want you + family to pay back OUR MONEY!!
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