KUALA LUMPUR – Toh Puan Na’imah Abdul Khalid, wife of former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of failing to declare her assets to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
According to the charge sheet, she has given a written statement under oath that does not comply with the notice terms served to her under Section 36(1)(b) of the MACC Act on December 13, 2023.
Na’imah, 67, was read the charge this morning before sessions court judge Azura Alwi.
She has been accused of not declaring several assets, including companies Ilham Tower Sdn Bhd and Ilham Baru Sdn Bhd, one Mercedes-Benz EQC400, one Mercedes-Benz SL 500, and properties including the Ilham Tower, a house in Persiaran Bukit Tunku, four lots of land in Bukit Tunku and one lot each in Penang and Taman Tun Dr Ismail, here.
The notice was issued on November 8 last year and served to her on November 14.
If found guilty of the offence, she faces a maximum five-year jail term and is liable to a maximum RM100,000 fine.
She is represented by lawyer Datuk Mohd Yusof Zainal Abiden – who is also former solicitor-general II, M. Puravalen, Cheah Kha Mun and Alex Tan, while deputy public prosecutors Ahmad Feisal Mohd Azmi, Maziah Mohaide and Mohd Fadhly Mohd Zamry appeared for the prosecution.
The prosecution applied for the court to order RM500,000 bail on Na’imah, as well as for her passport to be surrendered to the court and to report to MACC every month.
However, her lawyer Yusof pleaded for a lower bail of RM250,000, while lawyer M. Puravalen submitted that there is no need for Na’imah to surrender her passport as she is not a flight risk.
The court fixed a RM250,000 bail, as well as for her passport to be surrendered.
The next case mention is scheduled for March 22.
Last night, she vowed to fight the charge levelled against her while defending her family’s fortunes.
“I will be in court tomorrow. I will fight this charge.”
Previously, she said Daim’s fortunes were reaped from his businesses and legitimate investments before his foray into politics in 1984.
MACC anti-money laundering division director Datuk Mohammad Zamri Zainul Abidin told Scoop last night that Na’imah is expected to be charged under Section 36(2) of the MACC Act 2009.
Months ago, the agency issued Daim and his family members a notice under Section 36(1)(b) of the MACC Act 2009, which compels them to declare all movable and immovable assets in Malaysia and abroad within 30 days.
On January 19, Na’imah said the recent “sensationalist” news reports of the Daim family’s wealth have painted them in a bad light, even though its offshore assets are no secret.
She was referring to the reports that she and her two sons – Muhammad Amin Zainuddin and Muhammad Amir Zainuddin – are said to be beneficiaries of a trust with US$52.5 million (RM247.5 million) in assets, eclipsing Daim’s assets listed in the Pandora Papers.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) reported that Na’imah had set up ZA Star Trust in 2010, with investments in three British Virgin Islands companies.
According to leaked records from a Cayman Islands financial services firm, two companies own properties in London, including an eighth-floor office building near St Paul’s Cathedral, which was bought in 2014 for US$50.8 million.
Currently, Daim is being investigated by the MACC over the revelations in the Pandora Papers, which linked him and his proxies to offshore businesses worth at least US$31 million.
Earlier, sources said the MACC probe into Daim would include his role in the 1998 over-the-counter stock-trading system in Singapore known as CLOB (Central Limit Order Book) as well as “forced divestments” by those on the opposing political divide.
Last week, Daim’s legal team, led by former attorney-general Tan Sri Tommy Thomas, went to the high court here to challenge MACC’s probe.
MACC’s investigation into Daim was opened nearly a year ago, in February 2023, based on the mention of his name in the 2021 Pandora Papers. No charges have been brought against him yet. – January 23, 2024