Govt, transport minister sued to prevent KVDT2 termination

A contractor has filed a lawsuit to prevent the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government from terminating its contract for the Klang Valley Double Tracking Phase 2 (KVDT2) project.

Dhaya Maju LTAT Sdn Bhd’s solicitors, law firm Zul Rafique & Partners, filed the Writ of Summons at the Kuala Lumpur High Court Registry on Sept 7.

The company’s legal action named the Malaysian government and Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong (above) as first and second defendants respectively.

On Aug 31, Dhaya Maju LTAT reportedly said that the PN administration has no basis to terminate the existing contract for the project.

Its chief executive officer Mohamed Razeek Hussain reportedly said the company has the capability to carry out the project, which was why it was given the contract twice, first by the BN government and later by the Pakatan Harapan administration in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

According to cause papers sighted by Malaysiakini this afternoon, the company is seeking a declaration that “there exists a valid and binding contract between the plaintiff and the first defendant by way of the Surat Setuju Terima dated Aug 19, 2019 (the contract)”.

The plaintiff is seeking a declaration that “any termination or cancellation of the contract by the first and/or the second defendant will be invalid, unlawful and wrongful”.

The company is seeking an injunction against the government and Wee to restrain and prevent them "from acting or taking any steps in connection with any cancellation or termination of the contract."

The company seeks from the first defendant an outstanding sum of RM137,054,534.21, and five percent interest on the outstanding sum from the date of judgment until the date of full and final settlement, among others.

Dhaya Maju LTAT also seeks damages to be assessed on the second defendant’s liability; interests, costs, and any other relief deemed fit by the court.

According to an application also filed by the company on Sept 7, the plaintiff also seeks a temporary injunction to prevent both defendants from terminating the contract, pending disposal of the main lawsuit.

According to the online cause list at ecourtservices.kehakiman.gov.my, the Kuala Lumpur High Court is set to hear the plaintiff’s interim injunction application tomorrow morning.

The project came into the spotlight when Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz (photo) revealed 101 contracts that were awarded through a direct negotiation process during the time Harapan was in power, of which KVDT2 was the largest in terms of value.

In August, Wee reportedly said the government will reopen the KVDT2 project tender.

Wee reportedly said this was because an investigation found that the RM4.475 billion project was still overpriced despite cost-cutting measures carried out by the Harapan administration.

As at press time, Malaysiakini is attempting to reach out to the plaintiff's lawyers over the matter.

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