Fri Sep 20 12:33:00 UTC 2024: ## Former Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng Allegedly Agreed to Bribe Through Middleman

**KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia** – The Sessions Court heard on Friday that former Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng allegedly agreed to receive a bribe through a middleman, businessman G. Gnanaraja.

Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd (CZCSB) director Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli, 65, who is a key prosecution witness, testified that he suggested Gnanaraja as a middleman to avoid detection by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

Zarul Ahmad stated that he met Lim in August 2017 and proposed Gnanaraja as a middleman, citing his connections to the then Prime Minister and the need to ensure the transfer of funds was not monitored.

“I was being monitored by the MACC at the time, so it was too risky for me to pay Lim directly. I needed a middleman as there was a possibility that more money would be handed to Lim in the future,” Zarul Ahmad told the court.

He claimed that Lim agreed to the suggestion and expressed a desire to meet with Gnanaraja soon. Subsequently, Zarul Ahmad contacted Gnanaraja via WhatsApp to inform him about the arrangement, leading to a positive reaction from the businessman.

Lim is currently facing multiple charges related to alleged bribery and corruption involving a highway and undersea tunnel project in Penang. The charges relate to receiving bribes totaling RM3.3 million and seeking an additional 10% of the profits from the project. He is also facing charges of causing two plots of land owned by the Penang government to be disposed of to companies allegedly connected to the project.

The trial, which is currently focused on challenging the credibility of Zarul Ahmad’s statements, will resume on October 2.

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