Deputy PM’s Daughter Linked to the Firm Behind the disputed KL Tower Concession

OPINION | Deputy PM’s Daughter Linked to the Firm Behind the disputed KL Tower Concession


7 Sep 2025 • 2:00 PM MYT



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Image credit: Malay Mail / Malay Mail


Khairunnisa Fadillah, the daughter of Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof, sits on the board of LSH Best Builders Sdn Bhd, another LSH company which is 70% owned by LSH Service Master Sdn Bhd. That detail, drawn from Companies Commission of Malaysia records, has placed the disputed Kuala Lumpur Tower concession under the opposition's scrutiny.


On 27 August, during a press conference at Parliament, Gerik MP Fathul Huzir Ayob asked whether “cronyism played a part in Putrajaya’s decision to award the KL Tower management concession to LSH Service Master Sdn Bhd, a company under tycoon Lim Keng Cheng’s Lim Seong Hai Capital Bhd.”


“This has a huge impact and restricts Bumiputera businesses, especially in strategic areas in Kuala Lumpur’s Golden Triangle,” Fathul said, pointing to the government’s decision to reduce the Bumiputera stake from 100% to 30%, which he argued “contradicts the Bumiputera Economic Transformation Plan 2035.”
Legal Wrangle Over the Tower

The dispute over Menara Kuala Lumpur is now before the courts. The tower’s previous concession holder, Menara Kuala Lumpur Sdn Bhd (MKLSB), and its parent company Hydroshoppe Sdn Bhd have filed a lawsuit against the Malaysian government and LSH Capital, claiming that they are the rightful operators of the tower as the communications ministry had agreed in 2022 to extend the concession until 2039.


The suit also revolves around losses of more than RM300 million in the form of liabilities incurred by Hydroshoppe in its acquisition of MKLSB shares from Telekom Malaysia in 2022.


Despite that litigation, authorities mobilised law enforcement officers including the police, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur and the Federal Commissioner of Lands on the night of April 16 to allow LSH Service Master to take over the tower, before sealing it off to visitors for a week.


Hydroshoppe has criticised Putrajaya’s interference in the dispute and has commenced contempt of court proceedings against Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil, the Malaysian government and LSH, with an appeal scheduled for tomorrow.

Bersatu’s Challenge to MACC

A Bersatu leader has questioned the silence of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) after it was revealed that the daughter of a senior government leader sits on the board of a company that was awarded a 20-year contract to manage the Kuala Lumpur Tower, the iconic structure currently at the centre of a legal battle following a controversial eviction of its previous concession holder.”


Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan said thattThe seriousness of the revelation made by several Perikatan Nasional MPs last week should have prompted MACC to spring into action.


“But so far, the authorities, especially the MACC, seem to have done nothing. Although I know from experience that MACC can instruct its officers to file a report to initiate an investigation,” Wan Saiful added.


He stressed that MACC could easily get more details of the opposition MPs’ revelations as they are in the public records.


“Why has nothing been done until today? MACC should not remain silent without providing an answer. All the data is in the SSM records,” Wan Saiful said, adding that “the KL Tower concession issue is of public interest and must be taken seriously by MACC and the Cabinet.”

A National Asset Under Scrutiny

“The Kuala Lumpur Tower, one of the capital’s most striking landmarks, has become a major attraction for foreign tourists.


The convergence of lawsuits, political questions and accusations of interference has now placed its future in the courts and under the public gaze. As Wan Saiful insisted, “MACC should not remain silent without providing an answer,” while Fathul Huzir warned, “This has a huge impact and restricts Bumiputera businesses.”


With the appeal due tomorrow and litigation ongoing, the ultimate control of Kuala Lumpur Tower remains unresolved. Whether the concession stands or falls, the landmark’s gleaming spire now also represents a debate over transparency, equity and accountability in the management of national assets.