KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 — The Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) has dismissed Lim Guan Eng’s request to withdraw the corruption charges related to the Penang undersea tunnel project.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin informed the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court of the decision, stating that the representation submitted by the accused was declined shortly after its receipt, Malaysiakini reported today.

The online news outlet quoted Wan Shaharuddin as telling trial judge Azura Alwi: "We received the representation on June 28. It was rejected two days later.”

Judge Azura subsequently scheduled the continuation of the trial for August 8.

Lim’s lawyer, Haijan Omar, was also present, reported another news outlet The Edge today.

It was reported previously that Lim’s legal team filed the representation letter due to conflicting testimony from star witness Datuk Zarul Ahmad Mohd Zulkifli.

Zarul Ahmad has faced impeachment proceedings since January before Judge Azura, who found discrepancies between his trial testimony and his statement recorded by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) regarding businessman G Gnanaraja’s cheating charges in the Shah Alam Sessions Court, said The Edge report.

Gnanaraja later pleaded guilty to an alternative charge under the Companies Act and was fined RM230,000.

According to the first amended charge, Lim, 63, is accused of using his position as the chief minister of Penang to receive bribes amounting to RM3.3 million by helping a company owned by Zarul Ahmad to be appointed to carry out the Construction of Main Roads and Tunnel in Penang worth RM6,341,383,702 between January 2011 and August 2017 at the Penang Chief Minister’s Office, national news agency Bernama reported.

As part of the RM3.3 million, a purported RM2 million was paid to Gnanaraja on August 18, 2017, reported The Edge.

As for the second amended charge, Lim is alleged to have asked for a bribe of 10 per cent of the profit obtained by Zarul Ahmad as an inducement to help the businessman’s company be appointed for the same project.

Lim allegedly committed the act near The Gardens Hotel, Lingkaran Syed Putra, Mid Valley City here between 12.30am and 2am in March 2011.

He also faces two charges of causing two lots of land owned by the Penang government worth RM208.8 million to be disposed of to two companies linked to the undersea tunnel project in the state which was allegedly carried out at the Penang State Land and Mines Office, Komtar on February 17, 2015 and March 22, 2017.