Datuk Dr Shaik Hussein Mydin, chairman of the Penang Regional Development Authority (Perda), pleaded not guilty on 15 October to 15 charges of accepting bribes totalling RM847,107.61, with the George Town Sessions Court later fixing 8 January 2027 for the submission of documents.
The 53-year-old is accused of corruptly receiving the money through Aliran Ilham Sdn Bhd (AISB) in multiple transactions from ATSH Management Sdn Bhd director Datuk R. Albert Suresh, according to Malay Mail. The alleged payments ranged from RM45.51 to RM244,620.
The money was allegedly an inducement to appoint ATSH as a subcontractor to AISB for a RM23.27 million project to build a 10-storey hostel block and facilities using the Industrialised Building System at Institut Kemahiran Tinggi PERDA in Bukit Panchor, Seberang Perai Selatan. The offences took place at a bank in Jalan Perda Selatan, Bandar Perda, between 26 June 2025 and 9 July 2026.
The charges were brought under Section 16(a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 (Act 694). On conviction, that section carries a prison term of up to 20 years and a fine of at least five times the value of the gratification involved, or RM10,000, whichever is higher.
MACC deputy public prosecutors Lim Jin Hong and Nurnajihatul Idayu Mohd Azuyar proposed bail of RM1 million, together with the surrender of his passport and monthly reporting to the MACC office. Judge Irwan Suainbon granted bail at RM300,000 with reporting once every two months, and allowed Shaik Hussein to apply for the temporary release of his passport for specific periods should the need arise.
Speaking to reporters after posting bail, Shaik Hussein said he had been waiting for the charges to be brought. “I actually wanted to be charged because I would rather face the charges and prove my innocence than remain uncertain about what was happening,” he told NST. He said the case concerned an open-tender project and not land matters involving Perda, for which he had earlier been remanded, and that the authority to approve open tenders rested with the relevant ministry rather than the Perda chairman.
Shaik Hussein said he believed the case involved technical issues over the division of powers and responsibilities, and that he was confident the court process would resolve the allegations. He questioned some of the transactions cited in the charges, including one of RM299.04, and said he found a number of the figures puzzling.
Asked whether the prosecution was politically motivated, he described the situation as possible political intimidation, but said he was not accusing any particular party and believed the public would make its own assessment. Shaik Hussein is a member of Umno’s supreme council and the party’s state deputy chairman.
He was represented by a seven-member defence team led by Datuk Amer Hamzah Arshad, who argued that the proposed RM1 million bail was excessive and that the prosecution had not given sufficient factual grounds to justify the sum as necessary to ensure his client’s attendance in court.
