KUALA LUMPUR — A witness told the Sessions Court here today that Lim Guan Eng (picture) would award him a project for constructing main roads and an undersea tunnel in Penang through direct negotiations, provided he could arrange a signing ceremony for a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the state government and a company from China.

Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (CZCSB) director Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli, 65, said that the former Penang chief minister told him that he would be awarded the project if the signing ceremony was witnessed by China’s Premier.

“Lim informed me about the matter while I was driving him home in early March 2011. Additionally, in my statement to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) regarding the investigation into the G. Gnanaraja case, I mentioned the roles of YB Lim Guan Eng and his officials in helping me secure the project,” he said.

He said this during cross-examination by Deputy Public Prosecutor Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin during the proceedings to challenge his credibility over his  contradictory statements in court regarding Gnanaraja’s fraud case involving RM19 million related to the undersea tunnel project.

On March 24, 2022, Zarul Ahmad told the court that Lim was pleased when the MOU signing ceremony between the state government and Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG) on the mega project relating to the roads and undersea tunnel worth RM6.34 billion was witnessed by the prime ministers of Malaysia and China. — BERNAMA