FORMER deputy prime minister Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told the Kuala Lumpur High Court today the monthly balances in his personal bank account were sufficient to settle his credit card bills without requiring him to use funds from Yayasan Akalbudi.

Zahid, 69, said it was his former executive secretary Major Mazlina Mazlan @ Ramly who negligently used cheques from the foundation to pay for his personal credit card expenditures.

“The balance in my personal bank account every month was more than sufficient to pay for my personal credit cards,” he said.

He said this in reply to a question from his lawyer Hamidi Mohd Noh in his defence on 47 charges – 12 on criminal breach of trust, eight on corruption and 27 on money-laundering – involving millions of ringgit belonging to the foundation.

When asked by Hamidi why Mazlina had used the foundation’s cheques to settle the credit card bills, Zahid said Mazlina was careless and had made a mistake by paying with foundation cheques.

“Mazlina in her testimony in court earlier also admitted to being negligent in that she did not know, was unsure and could not remember on the management of credit card bills,” he added.

Earlier, Zahid was shown balances in his Maybank account between 2014 and 2016, which had a minimum of RM100,000 and maximum of RM600,000, while his credit card bills ranged from RM600 to RM215,000 during the same period.

At an earlier hearing, Zahid told the court that Mazlina, who was entrusted with managing his personal and foundation accounts, had committed various acts of negligence, including failing to understand and read his credit card statements, which caused insufficient and excessive payments to be made.

For the 12 charges of criminal breach of trust, Zahid is alleged to have used foundation funds to make six payments for his credit cards, and insurance policies and licences for his private vehicles, transfer money to a legal firm and make contributions to the Police Football Association.

The Bagan Datuk MP allegedly committed the offences at Affin Bank Bhd, Jalan Bunus Branch, off Jalan Masjid India, between January 13, 2014 and December 23, 2016.

He was charged under section 409 of the penal code, which provides for a jail term of between two and 20 years, whipping and fine.

The hearing before Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah continues. – Bernama, May 25, 2022.