Rahmat Abu Bakar said he was appointed as chairman and adviser of Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) in July 2018, but he resigned in November the same year following advice from former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission chief commissioner Abu Kassim Mohamed.

Rahmat said he had also returned the RM1.3 million cash paid to him for his services as he had doubts over the source of the funds.

On Tuesday, a witness in Zahid’s trial testified that RM2.6 million in political donations was given to Bersatu, the party which was formerly chaired by Mahathir.

David Tan, UKSB’s former administrative manager, said the sum was passed to Rahmat after Pakatan Harapan (PH) won the 2018 general election and Mahathir was appointed the prime minister for the second time.

Rahmat said in a statement that the witness’ testimony was false and defamatory. He said he would take action if Tan did not withdraw his claim.

However, under civil law, witnesses have absolute privilege over statements made in the course of their testimony.

Mahathir has since denied the allegation.

Rahmat said Mahathir was not aware of his UKSB links.

“Neither was Tun Dr Mahathir involved.”

UKSB was appointed by the government in 2016 to handle the foreign visa system for Chinese tourists.

The company was implicated in the case against Zahid, the former deputy prime minister and home minister, who is standing trial on 33 corruption charges.

We are live on Telegram, subscribe here for breaking news and the latest announcements.