Tajudin, MAS withdraw interlocutory appeals, to move on with trial

PUTRAJAYA, May 10 — The Court of Appeal has struck out six interlocutory appeals involving three cases relating to claims and counter-claims between Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and Tan Sri Tajudin Ramli.

Tajudin has been entangled in a complicated series of expensive suits.

The decision was made today after both parties told the court here that they had agreed to withdraw the appeals, and to focus on the MAS-Tajudin trial which is expected to begin some time in July.

Court of Appeal judges Datuk Seri Abu Samah Nordin, Datuk Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad and Datuk Alizatul Khair Osman Khairuddin ruled that “they (the six interlocutory appeals) all be withdrawn with no order to costs... all struck off with no order to costs.”

“Basically, these are six interlocutory appeals concerning three cases with MAS, claims and counter-claims.

“Forget about interlocutory, back to trial,” one of Tajudin’s lawyers, Rosli Dahlan, told reporters outside of court.

“The trial case in July, it’s what we call the ‘contract case’, where MAS entered (a contract deal) with his (Tajudin) conduit companies.

“MAS’s contention is that the contract can’t be seen as disadvantageous to them,” Rosli toldThe Malaysian Insider later.

MAS has said it was forced to enter into a disadvantageous aircraft lease contract with a company, which was later linked to Tajudin’s family, causing it to lose RM10 million to RM16 million a month before the project was terminated when Tajudin left the company.

The termination resulted in a RM300 million arbitration claim against MAS by the company.

Tajudin has in turn claimed that a separate suit, by MAS and its two subsidiaries, MAS Golden Holidays Sdn Bhd dan MAS Hotels & Boutiques Sdn Bhd, contained bare allegations with no basis and was an abuse of the court system.

MAS and its subsidiaries charged that Tajudin and his four companies — Naluri Corporation Bhd, Promet (Langkawi) Resorts Sdn Bhd, Kauthar Venture Capital Sdn Bhd and Pakatan Permai Sdn Bhd — had intentionally breached his obligations and trust to win certain contracts that benefited him, using MAS.

The Kedah-born businessman claimed that MAS had acted with malice and in bad faith in taking legal action against him to embarrass and tarnish his reputation.

Tajudin was the executive chairman of the airline from 1994 to 2001.

Tajudin has been entangled in a complicated series of expensive suits, countersuits and appeals with various parties arising from his failure to service a billion ringgit loan he took to purchase a major stake in MAS in 1994.

He has claimed that his purchase was a forced “national service”, disguised as an arm’s length commercial deal, because the government wanted to appease the investment community and the public.