KUALA LUMPUR: A former director of the Perwaja group of companies was not given the company’s cash-flow charts despite repeatedly asking for it, the Sessions Court heard yesterday.
Datuk Nik Mohd Affandi Nik Yusoff, who was also Finance Ministry’s Public Sector Companies Monitoring Division director then, said he requested for the charts to view its position through his division’s accountant.
“I remember my officer reporting to me that he had never obtained the charts,” he said when crossed-examined by Datuk Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, counsel for Tan Sri Eric Chia Eng Hock.
Chia, 71, is charged with misappropriating RM76.4mil from Perwaja Rolling Mill and Development Sdn Bhd on Feb 19, 1994.
He faces an alternative charge of dishonestly disposing the company’s funds by entering into an agreement with NKK Corporation and authorising the RM76.4mil to be paid into the account of Frilsham Enterprise Inc with the American Express Bank Ltd, Hong Kong, without the approval of the board of directors of Perwaja Rolling Mill and Development or its tender committee.
Asked whether he had reported the matter to the Finance Minister, Nik Mohd Affandi said he could not remember doing so.
Earlier, Nik Mohd Affandi said he had not gone through the turnkey contracts for the construction of the beam and section mill in Gurun, Kedah, despite being a company director appointed by the Finance Ministry.
“Perwaja was a special case where the Finance Ministry has high regard for the company’s management so it does not interfere,” he said.
He added that the ministry gave full responsibility to Perwaja’s directors and Chia, the managing director.
Hearing before judge Akhtar Tahir continues on March 21.
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