THE Education Ministry proceeded to issue Jepak Holding Sdn Bhd with a letter of award (LoA) for a solar hybrid project for schools in Sarawak despite reservations from Treasury officials, the high court heard today.

Prosecution witness Othman Semail, who was the Finance Ministry’s then government procurement department chief, said that he had advised then prime minister Najib Razak through several memoranda that the Education Ministry didn’t have enough allocations for the project.

He said he had also raised doubts on Jepak’s ability to carry out the project.

Othman, who is deputy Treasury secretary-general, said this while under cross-examination by defence lawyer Akberdin Abdul Kader in Rosmah Mansor’s corruption trial in the Kuala Lumpur High Court today.

“Despite my reservations on the project, which was also accepted by the finance minister, the Education Ministry still issued the LoA on November 10, 2016,” he told the court.

In one of the memos submitted to Najib, Othman had given two options to the prime minister. The first was not to approve the project, and option two was to approve the proposal to gradually implement solar systems using the annual budget of operating expenses.

Akberdin then asked Othman to explain to the court on why he had expressed his concerns to Najib about the project being awarded to Jepak.

Going through his memos, he highlighted budget as the first and foremost point. He said that the Education Ministry did not have an allocation for the project worth RM1.25 billion and that the National Budget Office (NBO) had also said that no additional allocations or release of sanctions would be considered for the project given the government’s financial circumstances.

He also said that the existing gen-set systems in schools were sufficient and that there were no problems with it, adding that there was no record to prove that the solar system was good.

“There were no problems with the existing gen-set system. There is also no proven record that the solar is good. The Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and NBO also suggested that the RM1.25 billon project was not worth considering,” he told the court.

He added that Najib had then agreed to grant the project to Jepak using the second option, and signed the document on October 27, 2016.

Othman also agreed with Akberdin that the LoA was awarded to Jepak without price negotiation and, in that way, the project failed to follow the requirements outlined under direct negotiation.

Akberdin also asked Othman if he was aware of a letter from then secretary-general of the education ministry, Madinah Mohamad, to Irwan Serigar, then secretary-general of the treasury, on September 2, 2016 – Madinah’s last day at work before retirement – to request for additional funds to proceed with solar project, which was subsequently denied.

Akberdin asked if Othman was aware that the letter was sent on Madinah’s last day at work, which he said he has no idea.

Akberdin: You know Madinah’s last day was on September 2, 2016?

Othman: I know she retired but don’t know the date.

Akberdin: You agree with me that Madinah asked for additional funds and for the LoA to be issued despite the fact that there were no proper financial plans and price negotiation? I put it to you in layman’s terms; you can’t buy something without knowing its price. Correct?

Othman: Yes. Correct.

Akberdin: If you look at the letters she sent, she asked for the LoA to be released and additional funds for the project, despite there being no proper financial plan and the price negotiations were not done, right? I mean how can you buy something without knowing its price, am I right?

Othman: Yes, correct.

Akberdin: So, you agree this is a breach of the rules?

Othman: Well, she didn’t release the LoA. She just asked to look into it.

Akberdin: By right, the Education Ministry should have aborted the idea of giving the LoA to Jepak because it breached the rules. Correct?

Othman: Yes.

Yesterday, the court heard that Madinah had desperately pursued approval for the solar hybrid project to be awarded to Jepak before she retired.

Akberdin told court that, despite Madinah’s claims that she had followed Najib orders and Rosmah’s request to expedite the solar project, it was her “mission” to ensure Jepak’s solar project started before she left the ministry.

The lawyer said within days of the letter of intent (LoI) being issued on August 29, 2016, Madinah had written to the Finance Ministry to request additional funds for the project and to ask that the LoA be issued to Jepak.

He described the urgency of such a request on the last day of her service (September 2, 2016) to be “extraordinary”.

Rosmah’s lawyers have been trying to shift the blame to Education Ministry officers concerning the approval of the LoA.

Rosmah, the 69-year-old wife of the former prime minister, faces three corruption charges, one of which is for soliciting RM187.5 million as inducement to help Jepak secure the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project for 369 rural schools in Sarawak.

She is also accused of receiving bribes totalling RM6.5 million in 2016 and 2017.

The trial continues on March 9. – February 20, 2020.