Politics
Did Chinese businessman Yikun Zhang pursue politicians for status and influence, or sought him out for donations and votes? A question at the heart of a political donation process comes up directly in court arguments
Former National Party president Peter Goodfellow poured out praise for Chinese community leader Yikun Zhang when he recommended him for a royal honor.
“It is my great pleasure to support Yikun Zhang’s nomination for a New Zealand Royal Award, covering business, philanthropy, community services and NZ-
relations with China,” Goodfellow wrote in a letter produced in the Supreme Court trial of Zhang and six others for solicitation by fraud related to donations to both National and Labor.
In the National Party letterhead, dated August 17, 2017, Goodfellow goes so far as to suggest that Zhang is one of the most esteemed Chinese in China.
“During the time I’ve known him, Yikun has been one of the most valued members of the Chinese community in New Zealand or in China. Yikun is known for his sincerity, ability and generosity.”
Goodfellow praised Zhang’s virtues in promoting trade and sponsoring Chinese community events. “I have been privileged to attend many of these events to see firsthand the enthusiastic engagement of many of our local community and the committed leadership and dynamism Yikun brings to every opportunity.”
His letter of recommendation was part of a portfolio of political statements of support sought on Zhang’s behalf by Ping Chen, an Auckland lawyer and general adviser to the Chao Shan General Association, a cultural and business group Zhang founded.
During her evidence in the trial of Zhang, former National MP Jami-Lee Ross and five others, a WeChat exchange between Chen and Ross discussed receiving Goodfellow’s endorsement for Zhang’s honorable nomination.
Chen sent the then Botany MP: “Yikun Zhang says thank you for all the support from the National Party. Thank you again.”
Ross wrote back: “That’s excellent. We are all very happy to support Yikun Zhang’s nomination. He is our brother.”
Earlier, a message from Ross had included the online link to the nomination form for Chen to fill out.
Chen was busy on WeChat looking for more support. She contacted another defendant, whose name is unknown, and was told that Auckland Mayor Phil Goff “has arrived in parliament and will have it signed tonight. Shall I deliver to Yikun on Sunday or Monday? “
Goff and others also wrote letters of support for the Chao Shan Association’s bid to host an international convention in Auckland. The mayor spoke of Zhang as “a successful entrepreneur and a well-regarded philanthropist.”
Transport minister Michael Wood had told the court that the Chao Shan association “certainly wanted to engage with a wide range of organizations and politicians.”
When asked by a lawyer if he could approach MPs to support someone for individual royal honours, Wood said: “It could.”
Chen collected all supporting letters and nomination form and gave it to former National Member of Parliament Eric Roy.
The court had previously heard that Zhang had asked questions about why he missed the New Year’s Honors in early 2018, but his associates were told by Ross that the nomination was quite late in the process.
In the Crown’s opening statement at the trial, Zhang was described as “a businessman, with diverse interests in companies in the construction and export sectors. He came to New Zealand from China in about 2000…. As will be discussed later, Zhang received a Queen’s Birthday Honor for his services to New Zealand-China relations and the Chinese community in July 2018.”
That reference to “later” came in two pages in the opening statement on “the evidence of the royal honours.”
Crown lawyers said they didn’t have to prove Why the defendants went to such lengths to hide Zhang’s identity as the original donor of the funds to both sides.
“Nevertheless, the Crown’s case against the defendants contains evidence of Mr. Zhang’s application for a royal honor in 2017, and the support he received for that application at the time of the disputed conduct.
“The evidence of royal honors provides a possible justification – a motive – for the defendants to engage in offenses that shielded the donation and the real donor from public inquiry.
“Here, Mr. Zhang received support from both the National Party and the Labor Party for his application for a New Zealand Royal Award. The support from both sides was close to the donations.”
The Crown claims the timing around Ross sending the nomination link to Ping Chen is “important”. “It was a few weeks after Mr. Ross met Mr. Zhang and… [an associate and fellow defendant] Colin Zheng to discuss the 2017 National Party donation.
“It was also sent in the time the broadcasters [people whose accounts were used to move the money] deposited the money that made up that donation (from Mr. Zhang) into the National Party bank account.”
Ross provided a letter of support for Zhang’s nomination. “The Crown case is that Mr. Ross not only wrote his own letter of support, but also had a hand in getting Mr. Goodfellow’s letter for Mr. Zhang.”
The opening statement also set out Labor’s support for the honour, including Goff who countersigned the nomination form, and another of the defendants, whose name has been suppressed, who also provided a letter.
“Again, the timing is remarkable. This was a few months after Mr. Zhang made the 2017 Labor Party donation.”
The then Labor Party chairman Nigel Haworth also signed a letter of support for the nomination.
On Tuesday, in an extensive Crown presentation of records of 300 telephone and WeChat text and audio messages, attorney John Dixon QC said that the line-by-line process of entering the material into the evidence was necessary because there was some doubt about it. the opinion of defense attorneys. on elements of the matter of the Crown.
Dixon said Zhang’s counsel, when questioning witnesses at the trial, suggested it was the politicians who had pursued him, but the detailed Crown evidence contained reports showing that Zhang had indeed pursued the politicians.
Zhang, Ross, Colin Zheng and his twin brother Joe Zheng are indicted for the two $100,000 donations in 2017 and 2018 to National that were split into smaller amounts to circumvent public reporting rules, and they are also charged with three others, of Who Names Have Been Suppressed, on a net donation of $35,000 to Labor in early 2017. All defendants have pleaded not guilty to the charges of solicitation by deception during the fourth week trial before Judge Ian Gault .