FGV Holdings allowed to strike out counterclaim on Asia Plantation takeover
V Anbalagan
-November 8, 2019 12:48 PM
KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today allowed the application by FGV Holdings Bhd to strike out a counterclaim by five of its former non-executive directors against the company and current directors over losses suffered in the 2014 acquisition of Asia Plantation Ltd (APL).
Lawyer Andrew Chiew said judge Azimah Omar allowed the company’s application on grounds that the counterclaim was “obviously unsustainable”.
“She ordered the five to pay RM8,000 in costs and to file their amended defence by Nov 29,” he told reporters.
Case management has been fixed on Jan 13.
The five non-executive directors – Ismee Ismail, Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Abdullah, Sulaiman Mahbob, Nozirah Bahari and Fazlur Rahman Ebrahim – are among 14 individuals sued by FGV for RM514 million following losses arising from the takeover or, alternatively, compensation for those losses.
They filed the counterclaim on grounds of abuse of court process against FGV and the existing board of directors.
Besides FGV, they named 10 individuals including the present chairman, non-independent directors and non-executive directors as defendants.
The 10 are Azhar Abdul Hamid, Mohd Hassan Ahmad, Othman Omar, Mohamed Nazeeb P Alithambi, Salmiah Ahmad, Hoi Lai Peng, Yusli Mohamed Yusoff, Nesadurai Kalanithi, Mohd Anwar Yahya and Mohamed Suffian Awang.
FGV filed the RM514 million suit on Nov 23, 2018 against its former president and CEO Mohd Emir Mavani Abdullah and 13 others.
According to a Bursa Malaysia filing, the suit was over the takeover of 100% equity in APL through a conditional voluntary cash offer in 2014.
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