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Sunday November 9, 2008 Angkasawan denies being paid RM1.2mil for seminar appearances By JANE RITIKOS

PETALING JAYA: Angkasawan Datuk Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor who is embroiled in a controversy over claims that he has collected RM1.2mil in fees for talks has vehemently denied the allegations.

The Angkasawan, whose family has also come out in support of him, also denied that he had made appearances and given talks to 150 companies.

“I am a millionaire? I wish I were,” he said in reaction to a report claiming that he had made a total of RM1.2mil by charging RM8,000 per hour.

Dr Sheikh Muszaphar also denied making appearances at 150 corporate functions, saying that so far, he had given talks at 200 schools and less than 10 companies.

“The report is absolutely untrue,” he said in an interview yesterday. Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili said the ministry had not received any official complaint about the allegations made in a news portal.

Dr Ongkili said that if the allegations were true, a complaint could be lodged and the ministry would investigate.

He said the Government’s contracts with the two Angkasawan — the other is Dr Faiz Khaleed — expires on Dec 31, adding that under the contract, they were obliged to take part in all promotional programmes arranged by the ministry.