A written judgment that disclosed how Penampang Umno division leader John Ambrose used his position of influence and good relationship with Prime Minister and Finance Minister Najib Abdul Razak to help secure projects related to UMS Sabah has raised eyebrows among the legal circle.

The Court of Appeal judgment last month by Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat showed how Ambrose met Najib twice, met with the PM's other officers and then Higher Education Minister Khaled Nordin (written as Nordin Khalid in the court judgment) to secure the projects for Asli Jati Engineering Sdn Bhd and its director Peter Anthony, whom he sued.

The projects in question are the electrical and mechanical maintenance work for Universiti Malaysia Sabah in Labuan (Labuan UMS project) and a comprehensive mechanical, civil and engineering maintenance work for UMS Sabah Phase 2 in Kota Kinabalu (KK UMS project), through direct negotiations, sometime between 2009 and 2010...