Hamzah’s ex-aide pressured me for share of RM19mil fee, MD tells court

Sayed Amir Muzzakkir Al Sayed Mohamad, the political secretary to a former home minister, is on trial for three corruption charges involving a RM19 million consultancy fee. The managing director of Al Khairi Group Berhad, Khairi Mat Jahya, testified in court that Sayed frequently pressured him to share a portion of the fee. Sayed claimed he had introduced Khairi to the owner of Nexuscorpgroup, Wan Azhar Mohamed Yusof, and helped arrange a meeting with then home minister Hamzah Zainudin.

Sayed also asserted that he played a role in securing the RMPNet project for Nexuscorpgroup. Khairi, who knew Sayed since 2003, revealed that in April 2020, Sayed arranged a meeting with Hamzah, resulting in the minister's notation for Nexuscorpgroup's supporting letter. However, it was only after the project won a Letter of Acceptance that the true value of the consultancy fee was disclosed to Khairi.

Sayed allegedly began demanding a share of the RM19 million fee, demanding around RM9 million. Two months prior to Sayed's removal from his position, Hamzah contacted Khairi to express concerns about Sayed's misconduct. Despite their close friendship, Khairi did not intervene to prevent Sayed's removal, believing it was best for Sayed to no longer hold a government position due to his frequent pressure.

The court case began with Sayed being charged on May 23, 2024, for accepting RM350,000 in bribes from Wan Azhar to assist Nexuscorpgroup in securing the RMPNet tender valued at RM381,112,042.44, including all taxes. The charges were filed under Section 16(a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2009, with a potential maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of at least five times the bribe amount or RM10,000, whichever is greater. The trial is set to continue.