Mohamed Dzaiddin Abdullah SCJ:

[1] This is an appeal by KL Engineering Sdn Bhd (the first appellant), a private limited company incorporated in Malaysia under the Companies Act 1965 (the Act), carrying on business at No 47, Jalan SS 20/11, Petaling Jaya, from the decision of the High Court Kuala Lumpur given on 27 February 1990, dismissing an appeal against the decision of the Sessions Court Judge Kuala Lumpur dated 17 May 1989. The appeal was originally brought by the first and second appellant, but at the outset of the hearing of this appeal, Encik Guy Varghese, Counsel for the second appellant, withdrew the latter's appeal. Accordingly, we struck out the second appellant's appeal with costs.

[2] The factual background to the action at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court was as follows. The respondent, a licensed finance company, sued the first appellant as hirer of one unit of Nikko Concrete Batching Plant (the equipment) under a hire-purchase agreement (P7) purported to have been signed by the second appellant and Kow Yuen Wah on 13 September 1986. Both the second appellant and Kow Yuen Wah had also on the same date executed a letter of guarantee (P13). When the first appella