KUALA LUMPUR – The high court today set January 13 to decide on an application by businessman Rayyan Radzwill Abdullah for a summary judgment of his suit against business partner and former managing director of Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd, Saidi Abang Samsudin.
Rayyan, 41, filed the suit on February 29, claiming that Saidi failed to pay him the remaining RM9 million for services rendered for the company to secure the solar hybrid projects for 369 rural schools in Sarawak.
Judge Datuk Ahmad Bache set the date after hearing submissions from both parties.
He also set the same date to decide on Saidi's application to strike out the suit by Rayyan.
Earlier, lawyer Krishna Kumar, representing Saidi, submitted that Rayyan, as the plaintiff, did not file an affidavit in reply to his client’s application to quash the suit.
He said Rayyan should have filed the suit against Jepak Holdings and not Saidi.
"Therefore, we request for the court strike out the suit,” the lawyer said.
Meanwhile, Rayyan’s lawyer, Ravee G. Uthirapathy, described as baseless and flawed the claim by the defendant that his client did not file an affidavit in reply to the matter, saying that there was an oral agreement between Rayyan and Saidi regarding the acquisition of the project by Jepak and consultation work provided to Rayyan after the acquisition of the project.
"The existence of the oral agreement was proven when Saidi paid RM1 million to Rayyan as part of the payment that Rayyan should have received after the acquisition of the project," he said in applying for a summary judgment from the court.
A summary judgment is a judgment entered by a court for one party against another summarily through argument without hearing the testimony of witnesses at a trial.
In the statement of claim, Rayyan stated that in early 2016, Saidi, 61, had appointed him as an adviser to obtain and prepare working papers for the solar hybrid project and, in return, the defendant promised to pay a fee of RM10 million, upon him (Saidi) securing the project.
He claimed that on December 10, 2016, Saidi obtained the project, valued at RM1.25 billion from the Education Ministry as a result of the efforts and work he did.
According to Rayyan, on August 10, 2017, Saidi paid him RM1 million, leaving a remaining RM9 million.
He is seeking the remaining payment of RM9 million, RM20 million in damages due to loss of investment opportunities, general damages, interest and costs.
Saidi, in his defence statement filed on April 6, denied that he had appointed the plaintiff as an adviser to obtain and prepare working papers for the project.
He also said that the agreement to secure the project between Jepak Holdings and the ministry was not in his personal capacity.
Saidi also filed a counterclaim against Rayyan for the immediate return of RM1 million that was paid to him.
Rayyan and Saidi are prosecution witnesses in the trial of the former prime minister's wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, who is facing a charge of soliciting RM187.5 million and two charges of receiving bribes of RM6.5 million involving the solar hybrid project. – Bernama, December 9, 2020
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