KUALA LUMPUR: Tycoon Tan Sri Tan Hua Choon pleaded not guilty to a charge of cheating related to a government fleet vehicle contract worth RM3.9 billion five years ago.
The 83-year-old Spanco Sdn Bhd chairman, widely known as Robert Tan in the corporate world, was charged under Section 420 of the Penal Code before Sessions Court judge Suzana Hussin.
Asked by the court interpreter if he understood the charge which was read out in Bahasa Melayu, and his plea, Tan said, "I understand. I am not guilty. I have done so much for the country."
The charge sheet read that Tan was accused of cheating the Finance Ministry's tender committee to award Spanco Sdn Bhd a contract valued RM3,966,386,628 through the Public Private Partnership Unit for a tender titled "Request For Proposal For Supply, Repair, Maintenance and Management of Government of Malaysia Vehicle Fleet."
He had allegedly cheated the ministry that there was at least 30 per cent of Bumiputera share ownership in Spanco through a document titled "Appendix IV(Annex i) Bidder's Profile and therefore, dishonestly induced the ministry to award the contract, which it would not have done so if it were to be deceived that way.
Tan, who is the company's executive director, allegedly committed the offence at the ministry's tender room office in Putrajaya between Feb 27 and Feb 28, 2019.
The charge carries jail imprisonment not less than one year and not more than 10 years; with whipping and fine, if guilty.
Deputy public prosecutor Mahadi Abdul Jumaat proposed a bail of RM2 million with one surety, taking into consideration the value stated in the charge, the severity of the case and Tan's status.
"This amount has been agreed between the prosecution and defence.
"As additional conditions, the accused must surrender his international passport, or diplomatic passport, if he has, and report to the nearest Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Kuala Lumpur office in the first week of the month until the disposal of the case.
"We also ask for the accused not to harass or contact any prosecution witness directly or through third parties until the disposal of the case," he said.
In mitigation, Tan's counsel Datuk Wan Azmir Wan Majid said his client suffered from hypertension as well as knee and back pain which required him to move around aided with a walking stick and assisted by his staff.
"In this case, the bailor is his own son and the proposed bail amount of RM2 million is a high sum. However, my client did not object to it.
"The requests for my client to surrender his passport bars his travel movement, and to report to the MACC once a month are not necessary, because of his condition.
"Alternatively, I ask the court to consider easing my client's movement because of his health condition and to report to the MACC once every three months. He is not a flight risk," he said.
Counsel Razlan Hadri, who held a watching brief for Spanco, told the court that the accused, as the company's executive director, was still active in the daily business affairs.
He asked for the definition of harassing prosecution witnesses and asked for a list of them as he feared Tan would unknowingly come in contact with any of them.
In reply, Mahadi said as the case was high profile and Tan had been charged, public interest was priority.
He said the additional conditions were necessary to ensure Tan's attendance in court and asked bail to be fixed.
"On the issue of harassing or contacting prosecution witnesses, we know that the accused is still working in the company and this, for sure, cannot be avoided.
"It is when we get reports of any attempts to discuss with prosecution witnesses or any efforts to influence them when giving a statement.
"It is not about them coming in contact or the witness has to resign from the company. That is not our intention," he said.
Judge Suzana set RM2 million bail with one surety.