The investment, trade and industry ministry is conducting an internal investigation after an Instagram user accused it of using his company’s designs for the Malaysian pavilion at the Osaka World Expo in Japan without payment or credit.
The ministry said it takes the allegation seriously and reserves all its legal rights in the matter.
“The ministry remains committed to the highest standards of integrity and compliance in all its dealings.
“We will take legal action if and when necessary,” it said in a statement today.
Yesterday, in an Instagram post, user @feythehuman claimed his company was engaged by the ministry in 2022 to develop the concept, theme and architectural direction for the Malaysian pavilion.
He said a proposal was presented to key stakeholders, including the minister, Tengku Zafrul Aziz, and the company was later repeatedly assured that it would be formally appointed for the project.
However, he said the company was told in January 2023 that the appointment would not proceed and that the ministry wanted to open a tender.
The Instagram user claimed the current concept, theme, narrative and architectural direction being used for the pavilion “are the ones we developed” and “appropriated without acknowledgement or compensation”.
He claimed his company was given the runaround in the past two years when it tried to get its work acknowledged and fairly compensated.
