Audio recording of mayor in Brickfields hawker eviction case handed to MACC

Lawyer Dinesh Nair speaking to reporters after handing out evidence to the MACC at the headquarters in Putrajaya.

A 10-minute audio recording of Kuala Lumpur Mayor Tan Sri Mohd Amin Nordin Abd Aziz telling hawkers relocated from their customary trading site in Little India, Brickfields last year that he was merely following a directive from the government has been handed to officers from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).  

In the recording, Mohd Amin said that government servants merely followed directives from the administration. 

"Politician is the political master," he said.  

Amin Nordin also advised the traders that they had to get permission from the Kortumalai Restaurant owners before they could move back. 

When contacted, Kortumalai owner S. Paramasivam said he had been paying RM1,500 a month to rent the observation deck originally built for the hawkers' patrons from DBKL since 2014.

After the restaurant took over over the upper deck, the traders continued operating downstairs until they were removed by DBKL.

"I am the legal tenant and have all the documentation to prove it," Paramasivam said. 

The audio clip, together with licence, pictures and other evidence, was handed to the MACC officers to facilitate investigations into possible abuse of power and corruption.