Zahid denies link to Nepali workers scam (Updated)

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has denied having any involvement in an elaborate scam which was accused of taking in more than Rs5 billion (RM185 million) from Nepali workers seeking work in Malaysia over the past five years.
A report by the Nepali Times had claimed Bestinet Sdn Bhd – a firm linked to Ahmad Zahid – and several other private local companies backed by powerful Malaysian politicians had profited from Putrajaya's revised foreign worker application process.
The former Home Minister however rubbished having any links to the company and the scam, saying he was ready to be investigated for the allegations.
"I'm prepared to be probed and produce whatever evidences if there are claims that me or my family members were involved. Go on and investigate, and I'm willing to face it.
"I don't care if it's a new or old case. I was never involved, and I'm not afraid," he told reporters when met at the Parliament lobby, here, today.
Ahmad Zahid maintained that he does not own Bestinet and that he had no shares in the company.
"I don't have a single sen of share in the company and I understand that the company also has a business even before I entered the Home Ministry," he said.
The report had claimed Bestinet is allegedly run by Ahmad Zahid's brother-in-law Amin Abdul Nor, which the Umno president also denied.
“That Amin guy is a Bangladeshi. I don’t have a brother-in-law by the name of Amin. The others I’m not sure. That’s why I said it must be investigated first,” he said.
The Nepali Times also claimed that Kathmandu-based affiliate, Malaysia VLN Nepal and One Stop Centre (OSC), as among the companies involved in the migrant worker registration scam.
“It all started five years ago when Ahmad Zahid outsourced the registration process to a private company (Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd) which required Nepali migrant workers to apply for work visas through a Kathmandu-based affiliate, Malaysia VLN Nepal.
“The agency charged Rs3,200 (RM118) from every Malaysia-bound Nepali worker, and collected Rs1.95 billion from more than 600,000 workers between September 2013 and April 2018,” the report had said.
It added that Bestinet had partnered with Nepal Health Professional Federation (NHPF) to carry out biometric screening that, charging each migrant worker Rs4,500 (RM167) after it became compulsory for all Nepali migrants to undergo a biometric test in July 2015.