Deal by Boustead to sell hotel not yet finalised, says Defence Ministry

The Defence Ministry today reaffirmed that the deal to sell its Royale Chulan Bukit Bintang Hotel by Boustead Holdings Bhd has yet to be finalised.

Defence Minister Mohamad Sabu's press secretary, Amin Shah Iskandar, in a statement, said the announcement to Bursa Malaysia on Feb 19 clearly stated that the offer letter was subject to certain conditions, among others, the buyer was given an exclusivity period of one month to conduct a due diligence on the hotel from Feb 19, and Boustead would provide all necessary assistance in conducting the assessment activity.

“Boustead also shall refrain from responding to (other than to reject) any enquiry, discussion, proposal or offer for or to continue, propose to, negotiate or hold discussions, and/or enter into any agreements, arrangements or understanding with any other parties during the exclusivity period,” he said.

“It is also subject to the execution of a conditional sale and purchase agreement (SPA) by the parties within the exclusivity period; and the conditions precedent for the proposed disposal will include, inter alia, the statutory and regulatory approvals required under the Malaysian law and the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

He was commenting on the statement by former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak who claimed that Boustead had made a formal announcement in its filing at the Bursa Malaysia on Feb 19 regarding the sale of the hotel.

Najib, in his Facebook account, claimed that Boustead confirmed that it had signed a letter of acceptance from the Singapore-based company.

Amin Shah said Najib probably just read the title of Boustead’s announcement to Bursa Malaysia and did not read its contents at all.

As a result, he failed to understand why the office of the defence minister said the sale of Hotel Royale Chulan Bukit Bintang has yet to be finalised, he added.

“It is clear that the sale of Royale Chulan Bukit Bintang Hotel has yet to be concluded and Najib is advised to focus on corruption-related cases that he is currently facing instead of continuing to spread fake news,” he said.

- Bernama