NFCorp bought Mercedes as company car parked at home, says Shahrizat

Shahrizat is all smiles as she arrives for today’s court hearing. — Picture by Boo Su-LynKUALA LUMPUR, March 19 — Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil told the High Court here today that the National Feedlot Corporation (NFCorp), helmed by her husband Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, bought a RM534,622 Mercedes-Benz in 2009 as a company car that was parked in her home.

The former Cabinet minister also said that NFCorp bought a condominium unit in Singapore for investment purposes under her family members’ names because Singapore law prohibited the purchase by NFCorp directly, which was a start-up company.

“There are four directors; they bought the Mercedes as a company car,” said Shahrizat.

“One car for four directors — my husband and three children... we stayed at the same house,” added the Wanita Umno chief, who was carrying a beige Louis Vuitton bag in the packed courtroom.

Shahrizat said the Mercedes-Benz CLS350 was bought as NFCorp was a “big enterprise” that was visited by foreign guests.

She admitted that NFCorp transferred over RM500,000 to Meatworks (Singapore) Private Limited, which was owned by her family, to buy a condominium unit in Singapore for investment purposes.

“I was told it was a new company venturing into business in Singapore. Investments were made under NFCorp. When they applied for the loan, because NFCorp was a new company, they had to go under their personal names,” said Shahrizat, referring to her family members.

Shahrizat also denied that she or her family had visited Phuket, when Rafizi Ramli’s lawyer, Ranjit Singh, pointed out that the PKR strategy director had raised NFCorp’s payments to travel agency Impian Global Network Services (IGNS), which offered holiday packages to Phuket, Bali, Kuching and Bandung.

“I’ve never been to Phuket and neither has my family. This is an example of defamation and allegations by your client,” she said.

Shahrizat also blamed Rafizi for causing the media attention surrounding the National Feedlot Centre (NFC), which is a cattle-farming project run by NFCorp that had received a RM250 million government loan.

“Anything involving public funds is of interest to the rakyat. But there was media frenzy because of evil intentions and defamation by your client,” she said.

Ranjit pointed out that the mainstream media had reported the Auditor-General’s remarks in the 2010 report about the NFC that highlighted several weaknesses of the project.

“I’m not saying your client has control of newspapers... it all emanated from the hate campaign orchestrated by your client. All the media picked up on this issue,” said Shahrizat.

She, however, agreed that Rafizi had raised a legitimate question in his November 18, 2011 press statement about whether there was siphoning of public funds after NFCorp transferred RM81 million to the National Meat Livestock Corporation (NMLC) that was owned by her family.

Shahrizat also insisted that Rafizi had defamed her when he questioned how a government project could be awarded to her family that had no expertise in farming cattle.

“It’s not a fair question. It’s defamation. It’s evil and meant to mislead the nation,” she said.

The hearing of Shahrizat’s RM100 million defamation suit against Rafizi and Wanita PKR chief Zuraida Kamaruddin before Justice Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera resumes this afternoon.