KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 7): Sentoria Group Bhd (KL:SNTORIA) said its former chief executive officer Datuk Loh Yuen Tuck has initiated legal proceedings against the company in the Industrial Court.
The company said in a bourse filing that it is currently reviewing the matter, and is in the process of responding to the legal case in accordance with the proper legal procedures.
It also said there will be a virtual case management on Jan 27.
In August last year, Sentoria stated that Loh had repudiated his service contract by failing to return to work on July 1, 2024, making his contract untenable.
Conversely, Loh contended that he was constructively dismissed, arguing that the company's actions unfairly compelled him to leave his position.
In a statement dated August 2024, Sentoria rejected Loh's claims of constructive dismissal, characterising his actions as a deliberate violation of contractual obligations.
Loh, who joined the company in January last year, was suspended on May 29 following allegations of misconduct. At the time, Sentoria had accused him of being absent from the office without notice since May 17, misusing his position, and engaging in various misrepresentations and irregularities.
Loh's three-month suspension was cut short on June 28, when Sentoria allowed him to return to work with immediate effect, saying it had decided to resolve the issue internally by discussing with the affected parties to come to an amicable solution, instead of appointing an external inquiry team to probe the allegations against Loh.
Sentoria’s largest shareholder is Sentoria Capital Sdn Bhd, which is controlled by joint managing directors Datuk Chan Kong San and Datuk Gan Kim Leong, holding a 35.8% stake.
The Penang state secretary is the second-largest shareholder in Sentoria with a 14.29% stake, while Tan Wei Lian, the executive chairman of TWL Holdings Bhd (formerly Tiger Synergy Bhd) (KL:TWL) holds 3.74% in Sentoria.
The company has triggered Bursa Malaysia's Practice Note 17 (PN17) criteria after its shareholders’ equity shrunk to 33% of its issued and paid-up capital, based on its just released financial statement for the year ended Sept 30, 2024 (FY2024).
It has been in the red since FY2019. For FY2024, the company reported a net loss of RM89.04 million on revenue of RM7.55 million.
Shares of Sentoria, which have fallen over 83% since January last year, closed unchanged at 1.5 sen on Tuesday, giving the company a market capitalisation of RM9.34 million.