KUALA LUMPUR: Country Heights Holdings Bhd founder Tan Sri Lim Kim Yew has stressed that he is "far away" from insolvency and suggested that an individual is using a dirty trick against him.
"I am solidly solvent as an entrepreneur in Malaysia. From the last 50 years of my experience, I have accumulated tangible and intangible assets. I don't choose to be a bankrupt. I don't want to be bankrupt.
"I never declared myself to be bankrupt or filed for bankruptcy," Lee said at a press conference to address the issue of his purported bankruptcy here today.
Lee reiterated that the purported bankruptcy was linked to a RM3 million legal suit.
He clarified that one of his former officers in a now wound-up US-based company, Club Excellence Inc, had previously obtained a RM3 million judgment in his favour in the US and used it in Malaysia to declare him bankrupt.
He claimed that the individual, a US citizen named Patrick Healy, later "felt it was a mistake" and agreed to negotiate with him for a settlement and to set aside the court order.
On Wednesday, Lee had been declared bankrupt by the Shah Alam High Court, according to Free Malaysia Today (FMT).
According to FMT, checks on the e-Solvency website reportedly found that he was declared bankrupt on Jan 26.
Subsequently, other local media outlets also reported that he was declared bankrupt.
Lee suggested that there was someone using a dirty trick against him.
"Who was the one on April 10 who paid RM100 and downloaded from the Department of Insolvency? Who is the one using this dirty trick instead of following the law of Malaysia?" he asked.
On his next course of action, Lee said he had written to the Malaysian government to allow his lawyer to continue negotiating with Healy's lawyer to set aside the US court order.
"Failing which, I will file my Statement of Affairs to the Department of Insolvency director general, by depositing RM3 million cash in case the department has to deal with Patrick Healy," he added.