KUALA LUMPUR, 19 Mar: The Chief Minister of Selangor, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim did not claim compensation from Datuk Seri Ahmad Said Hamdan after he apologised for his statement on the purchase of sacrificial cattle in 2009.
Ahmad Said, the former Commissioner of the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) has apologised and withdrew his statement, which was made and published on 21 February 2009 by the media.
“The statement was made before investigation papers were referred to and decided by the Attorney General.
“I declare that all statement were made without malice, without having intention to undermine or discredit the reputation, image and integrity of the plaintiff,” Ahmad Said said in his apology statement today.
Ahmad Said’s original statement in 2009 in relation to the accusation that Abdul Khalid had abused his power to donate RM110,400 for the purpose of purchasing 46 sacrificial cows in conjunction with the Eid al-Adha celebrations in Bandar Tun Razak in the same year.
Following the allegations, MACC started investigations and found no element of abuse of power or irregularities in the purchase.
Abdul Khalid in a press conference this morning said that he does not intend to claim any compensation despite the fact Ahmad Said had caused his reputation as the top state leader to be tarnished.
“I do not want taxpayer’s money to be used to compensate seeing that the suit against Ahmad Said is above his capacity as a civil servant who is also the first defendant and the Malaysian Government as the second defendant.
“Because of this reason, I have decided to impose the minimal cost on this case.
“In my opinion, every citizen in this country has the right to live safely and secure in terms of personal safety, dignity and self-worth, as enshrines in the Federal Constitution.
“These rights should be respected by every citizen if we want to be civilised Malaysians,” he said when met after the trial behind closed doors at the room of Judge Datuk Lau Bee Lan at the Civil Court in Jalan Duta today.
The apology text will be published in The Star and The New Straits Times newspapers tomorrow.
“I understand the position of Datuk Ahmad Said Hamdan as a Senior Government Officer and he explained that when he issues the statement, he was acting on his capacity as the MACC Commissioner,” he added.
Senior Federal Counsel Noorin Badaruddin, Nadia Hanim Azlina represented the former MACC Commissioner, Datuk Ahmad Said Hamdan, the MACC and the Malaysian Government.
Meanwhile lawyers S Sankaranair Kalidass represented Abdul Khalid.
