Contractor alleges unfair treatment over payment issue
KUCHING: A contractor has expressed his disappointment over alleged unfair treatment when his company did not receive payment for progressive works done in connection with Kapit Stadium’s upgrading project.
Syarikat Pet Rocks Malaysia director Hilarion Bisi Jenggut said he was contemplating legal redress over what he described as a breach of contract and extreme prejudice.
Compounding the situation now is the fact that his company had bought all the necessary materials to complete the project but thus far no payment has been made by the client Sarawak Sports Corporation (SSC) for several past progressive works.
“This has resulted in him and his company facing a huge dilemma,” he said and claiming that the project is now 80 per cent completed.
“Work-in-progress for subsoil drain is at its final stage heading for completion. (But) up to today, we have not received a single sen for works done on Kapit Stadium” he told thesundaypost here yesterday.
Bisi also lamented that the project consultant only came down to Kapit to inspect the works once a month.
Bisi said he lodged a police report last month in Kuching asking the police to get to the bottom of things.
Bisi conceded that his company had received a warning letter from SSC dated April 4 2019.
“I have just received it today (May 2) stating that on March 18 2019, our actual work progress was just eight per cent only. Our running track materials arrived in Kapit on March 13 2019. Is this not a misleading report?
“Works on the running track alone already comprised 70 per cent of the total contract. What about subsoil drain and builders’ works which they have not taken into account?” he asked.
“Our actual work done is more than 80 per cent and not eight per cent as per the SSC warning letter. This claim by SSC only goes to show that work superintendents were not in Kapit when our running track materials were delivered to the site on March 13, 2019,” he stressed.
“So how can on March 18, the client SSC said this project is only eight per cent completed?” Bisi asked.
When pressed further, Bisi said the running track materials could not be installed until works on the subsoil drainage system and drain cover installation are fully completed.
Bisi said he was compelled to issue a statement because Kapit residents are now complaining as to why the upgrading works on their sports stadium are delayed. Despite this, he aimed to complete it.
However he still needed the payment from SSC for previous work done as he had already spent millions of ringgit for the materials which had arrived here, Bisi said.
According to Bisi, Pet Rocks and SSC signed the contract agreement for the Kapit Stadium project in March 2018 at the SSC office in Jalan Stadium here and that SSC now owed them more than RM3 million.
When contacted to respond to Bisi’s claim, SSC chief executive officer (CEO) Dr Ong Kong Swee said payment towards the project will only be disbursed based on evaluation report and that warning letter would be issued when the actual works are delayed, done not according to required specifications and/or done only at the very last minute.
“And because this project is not any simple project, you’d need experts and site engineers on top of specialists and proper people to do the job but which they (Pet Rocks) do not have,” said Ong.
When referring to the project consultant’s response to Bisi’s complaints, Ong said the contractor has been paid for progressive work done on their interim payment for physical work done up until March 17 2019.
“The payment sum was not up to minimum payment of RM100,000 as per Appendix in Form of Contract,” he added.
On March 18 2019, another evaluation was carried out but there were not many changes to the physical work done, said Ong.
“The running track materials were only delivered to the site March 18 2019. Therefore, not much work had been carried out before that,” Ong said.
He said the consultant’s evaluation on Pet Rocks’ performance is that progress of actual physical work is at eight per cent.
“The progress of financial work (without materials on site) is at 9.26 per cent while its progress on actual financial work (with materials on site) is at 33.27 per cent,” Ong said.
“As per the Memorandum of Agreement, consultants will indeed do their inspection on site once a month. And the progress meeting was in fact held for the contractor to report their work progress on site,” he stressed.
Subsoil drain work has been approved on Nov 29 2018 but work on the football field has not been completed until this date, he argued.
“Site progress meetings are held monthly on site and only technical meetings are called and held in Kuching,” Ong pointed out.
Subsequently Bisi argued that Ong’s claim on the need to have the expertise to install the running track, was not accurate as they (Pet Rocks) have made an agreement that the installation of running track materials and other sports equipment shall all be done by their running track suppliers according to their standard specifications. Otherwise it would not be approved for non compliance with the international IAAF standard type.