KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd has filed an application to set aside the default judgment order obtained by the Malaysian Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) for the company to pay more than RM1.65 million in outstanding levies to CIDB involving a solar hybrid project for 369 rural schools in Sarawak.

Jepak Holdings filed the application through Messrs Hazurah Yusoff & Partners in the High Court here on February 11, and among others, applied for a court order to set aside the default judgment order dated January 13 for RM1,656,250.00 to be paid at an interest rate of five per cent per annum from the date of judgment and costs amounting to RM1,500.

An affidavit of support from Datuk Mohd Afrizan Husain, who was appointed as the judicial manager of Jepak Holdings, said that on January 16, Jepak Holdings had submitted an application to place the company under the judicial manager to protect it from the ongoing claims from creditors.

Mohd Afrizan claimed that Jepak Holdings also did not receive the writ of summons and statement of claim filed by CIDB, and only found out about the legal action taken against the company through a news portal on January 15.

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He claimed that Jepak Holdings also did not intend to or carelessly remained absent from the hearing, as if the company had received the writ of summons and statement of claim, it would definitely have defended itself.

On January 13, CIDB was given permission by the court to obtain a default judgment against Jepak Holdings after the company failed to be present in the suit filed by CIDB as the plaintiff.

In a statement of claim filed on December 2 last year, CIDB said based on the provisions under the Malaysian Construction Industry Development Board (LPIPM) Act 1994, it reserved the right to impose a levy on any registered contractor before commencing construction work on projects valued at RM500,000 and above for a quarter per cent of the total contract price.

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According to CIDB, on November 10, 2016, Jepak Holdings was appointed to carry out contract works known as the “Proposed Implementation Through Direct Negotiations for Hybrid Photovoltaic (PV) Solar System Integrated Project and Maintenance and Operation of Diesel Gen-sets for 369 Sarawak Rural Schools” worth RM1.25 billion.

The solar hybrid project has been linked to a corruption case involving Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, the wife of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

CIDB said that a notice of claim dated August 16, 2019, was issued against the defendant to claim the outstanding levy amount, which had yet to be paid.

Therefore, the plaintiff demanded that the defendant pay the RM1,656,250.00 due as of August 16, 2019, with interest, costs and other relief deemed appropriate by the court.

The case has been set for mention on March 9 before Deputy Registrar Maslinda Selamat. — Bernama