KUALA LUMPUR: The Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry is in talks with a company that accused it of using design work without compensation for the Malaysia Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka.
Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said in a written parliamentary reply that discussions were ongoing to resolve the matter and safeguard Malaysia’s participation in the event.
“To ensure that this matter can be resolved amicably between both parties, the Ministry is holding active discussions with the company.
“This is important to ensure that Malaysia’s participation in Expo 2025 Osaka, Japan is not affected,” he said.
He said all parties involved in the project underwent a government-set selection process.
“MITI will continue to strengthen its internal guidelines as needed, particularly by enhancing oversight of all aspects of partner selection — especially for high-impact projects that reflect the country’s image on the international stage,” he added.
Current Media Group (CMG) founder Fey Ilyas first raised the issue publicly on April 25, highlighting alleged similarities between its proposal and the final design adopted for the Malaysia Pavilion.
MITI launched an internal probe on April 26 but the company said it received no further contact. It filed legal action on July 17.
The next day, MITI said the probe had concluded.
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