Lewis & Co partner Muralidharan Balan Pillai asserted that Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had asked his law firm to handle and manage funds on behalf of Yayasan Al-Falah, and that Zahid had directed for these monies to be put into fixed deposits for the foundation. ― Picture by Hari Anggara
Yayasan Al-Falah’s chairman is Datuk Seri Mohamad Nasaee Ahmad Tarmizi, who is also Zahid’s younger brother. “Yayasan Al-Falah is a family foundation, both Datuk Seri Zahid initiated the foundation and Datuk Seri Nasaee is chairman of trustees, both of them knew the monies I was holding was actually for Yayasan Al-Falah and for the purposes particularly for the building of mosque in Bagan Datuk and for the tahfiz and it’s for religious and charitable purposes.
When asked why his assertion of having been appointed to handle Yayasan Al-Falah’s funds should be believed, Muralidharan highlighted that he had not profited from this. Faisalludin Mohamat Yusuff agreed with Zaidi that the only person who can testify whether Lewis & Co was actually appointed as Yayasan Al-Falah’s trustee is Nasaee himself. — Picture by Yusof Mat IsaToday, 66th prosecution witness and Yayasan Al-Falah’s trustee Faisalludin Mohamat Yusuff — who was recalled to testify — was shown the same 2018 letter from Yayasan Al-Falah to Lewis & Co.
Earlier under questioning by Zaidi, Faisalludin testified that Yayasan Al-Falah’s trustees had never appointed any law firm including Lewis & Co’s Muralidharan to act as the foundation’s trustee.