SHORTLY after Penang businessman Phang Li Khoon bought the Jalan Pinhorn bungalow, over RM100,000 worth of renovations were done on the property.

Contractor Chong Eng Tong, whose company ET Construction did work at the bungalow, told the Penang High Court that he was contacted by a person he identified as “Ah Yong” to handle the renovations for the house at 25, Jalan Pinhorn in the “second or third month” of 2009.

The Jalan Pinhorn property is in the centre of Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng’s graft case. He has been accused of using his position to obtain gratification for himself and his wife, Betty Chew, by buying the bungalow from Phang at RM2.8 million in 2015, below the market price.

Phang had bought the property in late 2008 at RM2.5 million. She initially rented the house to Lim, who paid her RM5,000 monthly rent.

The prosecution is saying the property was valued at RM4.27 million at the time, and will present evidence that Guan Eng had bought the property while knowing it was below the market price and that Phang had connection with his official functions as chief minister.

The prosecution is also seeking to prove that Phang suffered losses of  RM6,872.00 a month, or a total RM494,784, the whole time she had rented the bungalow to Lim from July 2009 to June 2015.

The offence under Section 165 of the Penal Code comes with jail of up to two years, fine or both upon conviction.

Phang is charged with abetting Lim under Section 109 of the Penal Code, which is read together with Section 165 of the Penal Code. She faces the same punishment upon conviction.

Chong told the court that the house was not occupied when he first visited the bungalow before starting work, and he had no idea that Lim was going to move into the house.

“I only found out that the chief minister was going to live there when I was building the guard post,” he said as he read out his witness statement this morning.

Chong said he renovated the living room, enlarged the dining room, expanded the back of the house, built the guard post, and did the marble flooring and parking space.

He said he was paid RM105,543.22 in two cheques that were passed to Ah Yong.

He also received RM6,252.81 in cash via Ah Yong, and another RM9,335 in a cash deposit into his company’s bank account.

“The total payments I received for labour and construction costs was RM121,131,” he told the court of the payments he received in 2009.

Chong said he saw Phang at the house “one or twice” while he was renovating the bungalow.

Earlier, another witness called by the prosecution, Henry Butcher Malaysia (Penang) director Teoh Poh Huat, confirmed that the price and value of the Jalan Pinhorn bungalow was RM2.5 million when Phang bought it in late 2008.

He said Henry Butcher did the valuation and submitted its report dated November 21, 2008 following a request from Public Bank.

“The bank had wanted to know the market price of the house, as it was processing a loan application from Phang to finance the purchase of the property,” he said.

Teoh said following inspections by the firm’s valuation department assistant manager, Yeoh Peng Hong, and price comparisons with the nearest properties in the area, the firm found RM2.5 million to be “a reasonable value” for the Jalan Pinhorn bungalow.

Today is the second day of trial for Lim’s graft case before judge Hadhariah Syed Ismail. The prosecution led by Masri Mohd Daud is calling 14 witnesses today.

Lim is also facing another charge under Section 23 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act.

He was accused of using his position to obtain gratification for himself and Chew by approving an application by Magnificent Emblem to convert agricultural land to residential use during a state planning committee meeting on July 18, 2014.

Phang, the former landlady, was a director at Magnificent Emblem. – March 27, 2018.