PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar did not check with former minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, her husband and National Feedlot Corporation Sdn Bhd (NFC) chairperson Mohd Salleh Ismail, or with Public Bank on allegations that Salleh purchased eight luxury condominium units at KL Eco City.

Nurul Izzah, who is also Lembah Pantai MP, admitted to this in the High Court in Kuala Lumpur today, saying she considered the bank documents obtained by then PKR director of strategy Rafizi Ramil to be self-explanatory.

Asked by senior counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who is appearing for Salleh, whether she sent letters or communicated with Salleh, asked Shahrizat about the purchase or even asked Public Bank about the loan, Nurul Izzah said she did not as her concern was about the government funds given to NFC.

"I do not think I verified with the plaintiff (Salleh) as he was hostile and it would be very difficult," she said.

Shafee: Could you not have sent a letter or hand delivered it before going public (with the press conference)?

Nurul Izzah: I do not believe so, as my role is as a Parliament member, not as a lawyer.

Shafee: Is it not important to hear the other side?

Nurul Izzah: My priority is on the funds. How many registered letters should I send to seek clarification?

She was testifying in the defamation suit filed against her and PKR by Salleh and NFC.

Nurul Izzah said although she had asked Shahrizat, at a press conference, to clarify the purchase claim, she said it was difficult to ask the former women, family and community Development minister directly as NFC does not come under the portfolio Shahrizat then held.

Shafee: When you made your statement, was Shahrizat still a senator and minister?

Nurul Izzah: Yes.

Shafee: Why can't you direct questions (to Shahrizat) in Parliament?

Nurul Izzah: I agree but it (the issue) is not under her ministry. That's not how Parliament works.

Concern over RM71.4mil used as leverage

Asked whether she verified the facts obtained from Rafizi, who held the press conference on the condo units prior to hers, and not do a parrot job (of repeating without verifying), Nurul Izzah agreed and added she was not in the habit of making a statement without verification.

The Lembah Pantai MP explained that her concern at that time was that more than RM71.4 million of the funds allocated to NFC by the government would be used as leverage for the purchase of the luxury condominium units, priced at RM12 million.

The federal lawmaker also said she did not communicate with Public Bank or the developer of the KL Eco City project, SP Setia Sdn Bhd, about the purchase as she said the developer was only interested in selling.

Shafee was asking all these questions as Nurul Izzah had argued justification as her defence in making the statement, and in doing so, he said she needed to verify the facts.

The lawyer also told the court that although Public Bank had offered the loan, Salleh did not take up the offer. To this, Nurul replied that she was not aware.

“The loan was withdrawn before you made the press conference (on March 7, 2012),” Shafee said.

However, Nurul Izzah said she thought the letter of offer from Public Bank, was “tantamount to an agreement” and that the loan for the eight codominium units had been approved.

Shafee said if Nurul Izzah was suggesting that his client had used the RM71.4 million as leverage, she could protect herself by lodging a police report and asking the authorities to investigate on this, and to this she agreed that she did not lodge any police report.

However, the Lembah Pantai MP quipped, she had much experience with police reports and seeing not much action taken of them.

'Nothing defamatory in my statements'

Earlier, when answering to questions from her lawyer Joshua Kevin Sathiaseelan, Nurul Izzah said she does not think the statements she made at the press conference were defamatory as these were directed at Shahrizat, who was the former Lembah Pantai MP.

“I stated that she would have known about the KL Eco City Development and the fact that the said development did not take into account the interest of the public. My statements were made on the basis of carrying out my duties and responsibility as an MP and a politician.

“The purchase of the eight condo units by the first plaintiff and his family raised an element of conflict of interest. The public demands an explanation on these issues and as a political figure, I voiced these issues out loud, seeking clarification from all parties involved.

“There was nothing in my mind, nor was my intention to defame the plaintiffs and it was not my intention to injure the image, personality of the plaintiffs,” she said.

Nurul Izzah, who is in her second term as Lembah Pantai MP, added she was involved in the press conference as the KL Eco City project is in her constituency, and the welfare of the public, especially the previous occupants of the said land (which was Kampung Abdullah Hukum) prior to the said development, had been ignored.

Shafee also quizzed Nurul Izzah on her allegation of possible conflict of interest on the part of Shahrizat, to which the PKR vice-president replied that the former minister could be privy to development in the area, having been the former MP for the area.

Nurul Izzah said although Shahrizat may not have been involved in the eviction of the former occupants of the land, she as Wanita Umno chief and being the local MP would have knowledge that the said land was owned by Yayasan Gerak Bakti Kebangsaan (YGBK), an entity under the control of Umno Youth.  
 
Justice Hue Siew Kheng fixed Feb 4 for submissions after counsel for both the plaintiff and defence  closed their cases.