Aminah is so poor that she can fork out RM80K for election but cannot buy a video cam

GEORGE TOWN : Independent candidate for the Penanti state by-election Aminah Abdullah was interviewed by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for more than five hours yesterday over her claims that she was offered cash and posts if she dropped out of the contest.

Aminah(right), hands over an envelope containing an audio CD and photographs of a meeting between her and two PKR members, to the Penang Election CommissionÕs chief administrative assistant in George Town, Noormah Shaari.

Aminah, 56, said she met with state MACC director Latifah Md Yatim and other officers of the commission from about 4.30pm to 10pm at the commission office in Butterworth.

"They told me to come in for a while but kept me there for a long time," she said.

Aminah said this to reporters after handing over a voice recording and photographs of her meeting with two men, who she said were PKR members, to the Election Commission office here today. She was accompanied by her husband Mohd Rofi Osman.

She handed over the items to the EC’s chief administrative assistant in Penang, Noormah Shaari.

Aminah, the PKR Penang Wanita chief from 1999 to 2007, when she quit the party, had alleged on Monday that the men offered her the Penang Municipal Council president's post if she withdrew from the by-election, or the post of deputy chief minister (I) if she contested and won.

She also said the men offered her RM80,000.

Aminah said there were two subsequent meetings with PKR members that she had also secretly recorded but had yet to burn into CDs.

Queried by reporters, Aminah admitted that she did not expect there was bribery involved.

In the recording, a person is heard asking her how much she was spending for the by-election and she said RM80,000. The person then suggested that she could be compensated if she pulled out.

She said she did not think her secret recordings amounted to breach of trust.

"Last time, at PKR meetings, they also secretly recorded the discussions," she said.

"I didn’t want to expose this but the Penang PKR chairman (Datuk Zahrain Mohamed Hashim) challenged me to show proof."

Asked how PKR supreme council member Cheah Kah Peng, whom she had called a friend, would feel about being recorded secretly, she said: "Kasihan dia (pity him) … when all this is over, I will call him to clarify."

Asked why they did not take a video of the meeting, Mohd Rofi said: "We don’t have video. This independent (Aminah) is poor."

Asked how she was able to fork out RM80,000 if she was poor, Aminah said she used her savings and former PKR members also supported her. (TheSun)