KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 20): Sentoria Group Bhd, which is currently embroiled in a dispute with its former chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Loh Yuen Tuck, has denied his claim of constructive dismissal.

Instead, according to the company, Loh repudiated his contract by failing to report for duty as requested in a letter dated July 26.

"Despite Loh initiating action in the Industrial Court, his resignation does not constitute constructive dismissal. We will present our case in court if required," Sentoria said in a filing on Tuesday in response to Bursa Malaysia's query over an article in the latest issue of The Edge Malaysia titled "Sentoria CEO departs on constructive dismissal, adding a new twist to feud."

Loh, in The Edge article, claimed that he was suspended as CEO at the end of May and reinstated at the end of June, adding that he resigned due to constructive dismissal.

He also said he had asked Sentoria to announce his constructive dismissal to Bursa Malaysia, but the company did not comply.

Loh is now seeking compensation through the Industrial Court.

According to Sentoria, Loh's suspension in May was due to an internal inquiry into his alleged harassment of employees and other issues.

Prior to his suspension, Sentoria said Loh had been absent from three exco meetings in May, and the suspension grounds were communicated to him on June 28. The company reinstated Loh in June to conduct the inquiry and seek an amicable resolution.

"Thus, Loh’s claim of being unaware of his suspension is baseless," the company said.

Sentoria also views Loh’s constructive dismissal claim as an attempt to manipulate the situation in bad faith.

Mass resignations

Sentoria also denies any connection between the resignations of independent directors and Loh’s departure.

The company said Datuk Abdul Rahman Imam Arshad's resignation was a condition set by Loh upon his appointment as CEO. The resignations of Datuk Ras Adiba Mohd Radzi, Lim Zhao Qi and Lim Poh Seong were due to professional etiquette following the failure of a third party brought in by Loh to assist with the company's revival.

Additionally, one director resigned before the board meeting where Loh’s suspension was decided, and two directors supported the suspension. Therefore, their resignations are not connected to Loh’s departure, Sentoria said.

"For the resignation of the company secretaries, we understand it was due to a threat of lawsuit from Datuk Loh," the company added.

Plan to revive Sentoria

Sentoria also rejects Loh’s claim that the company did not adhere to his revival plan, saying that the plan was unworkable.

The plan included three main components, first of which was purchasing 66.67 million shares from Sentoria Capital, the largest shareholder, which Loh did not achieve.

The second component involved the securing of RM7 million to RM10 million in working capital for the Morib Project, but Loh only secured RM3.5 million.

The third component was to raise funds through a reverse convertible bond, deemed infeasible due to unmet bank consent conditions and significantly overstated projections.

"The company’s decisions were based on Loh’s non-viable solutions, which constitutes misrepresentation. We hope this clarifies the matters and reserves our rights," the company said.

Shares in Sentoria gained 0.5 sen or 12.5% to 4.5 sen at Tuesday's market close, giving the company a market capitalisation of RM28.03 million.