Michael Suen tells court he isn't good friends with SHKP's Thomas Chan

Retired government minister Michael Suen Ming-yeung has denied being a good friend of a Sun Hung Kai Properties executive who is a co-defendant in the corruption trial of former chief secretary Rafael Hui Si-yan.

Testifying in the High Court yesterday, Suen, a former secretary for education, also denied he had up to 15 meals with SHKP executive director Thomas Chan Kui-yuen.

Suen is a prosecution witness in the trial of Hui, who is accused of having taken tens of millions of dollars from SHKP co-chairmen Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong and Raymond Kwok Ping-luen to be the property giant's "eyes and ears" in the government.

Hui was an SHKP consultant before he became the city's chief secretary and the chairman of the West Kowloon Cultural District steering committee in 2005. A joint venture of SHKP submitted proposals for the arts hub project.

Suen, then vice-chairman of the committee, yesterday agreed under cross-examination there was nothing wrong with government officials socialising with people in the private sector if they followed the Civil Service Code.

Defence counsel Ian Winter QC suggested Suen was quite good friends with his client, Chan. Suen said: "I cannot say we are quite good friends. I would say I know him and we have some dealings."