KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 19): The legal dispute between Cekap Urus Sdn Bhd — a company linked to tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan — and Spanco Sdn Bhd and the government regarding the government fleet car project will proceed to trial on March 12 before a new judge.
High Court judge Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz will preside over the case, replacing Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid, who has been elevated to the Court of Appeal.
Hayatul has maintained the original hearing date on March 12, following case management on Wednesday before deputy registrar Lee Ka Full.
This was confirmed by Cekap Urus' lawyer Chuar Kia Lin and Spanco's lawyer Navpreet Singh when contacted by The Edge.
They also said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the government intend to file an additional affidavit before Feb 24, with a reply due by Feb 28.
On Oct 30, Cekap Urus — a joint-venture (JV) between Tan’s Berjaya Corp Bhd (KL:BJCORP), Naza Corp Holdings Sdn Bhd,and Tunku Tun Aminah Sultan Ibrahim Ismail — reinstated the action against Spanco and the government, after withdrawing its notice of discontinuance in the suit.
Berjaya controls a 51% stake in the JV, Naza owns 29%, and the daughter of Malaysia’s current King holds the remaining 20%.
Cekap Urus asserts that it was given a letter of intent (LOI) from the Ministry of Finance for the government fleet project in early 2019.
However, on Dec 11, 2019, the government decided to cancel or terminate the LOI for the supply and management of the government vehicle fleet and awarded the contract to Spanco instead, prompting Cekap Urus to challenge the termination through a judicial review.
Cekap Urus is seeking to invalidate the LOI termination. It is also asking the court for a declaration that the government and ministry’s decision to award Spanco the fleet project through direct negotiation was invalid, null and void.
The JV company is demanding a certiorari order to quash the government’s dismissal of its appeal against the termination on Jan 25 this year. It has also requested a mandamus order to compel the government to execute the letter awarded to Cekap Urus.
Last Aug 2, Cekap Urus filed a notice to discontinue its application for a judicial review against the government's decision to terminate the LOI, with an option to refile, without cost. The Federal government and MOF had no objections to that, but Spanco disagreed with the terms of the withdrawal and sought costs. Cekap Urus subsequently reinstated the suit in October.
Spanco chairman Tan Sri Robert Tan Hua Choon was charged in April last year for allegedly cheating the MOF in a RM3.966 billion government fleet contract. Tan’s trial is still pending.