Court Finds Gerakan Leader Newspaper Liable For Defaming Guan Eng

---

 


The High Court in Penang has found Gerakan deputy president Oh Tong Keong and the Chinese-language daily China Press liable for defaming former finance minister Lim Guan Eng.
ADSAccording to the report by FMT yesterday, the judge Kenneth St James ordered Oh to pay RM400,000 in general damages, RM100,000 in costs, and 5 percent per annum interest from the date the writ was filed.
He was also ordered to publish an unconditional apology to Lim in both online and print versions of China Press, and is barred from making the defamatory statements again.
China Press was ordered to pay RM150,000 in damages, RM80,000 in costs, and 5 percent interest per annum.
Meanwhile, a China Press report yesterday about the same case states that the daily intends to appeal against the decision, and quoted Oh saying he will discuss with his counsel on whether to appeal the ruling.
Gerakan deputy president Oh Tong KeongAccording to the FMT report, the case is regarding Oh’s press conference on Sept 25, 2019, where he asked whether Lim had helped WGW Entertainment Sdn Bhd and its owner Hendrik Huang secure tax exemptions for the “Fantastic Duo” Mandopop concert at Spice Arena, Bayan Lepas, which was later cancelled.
He reportedly produced photos of Lim and Huang, and official letters from the tourism ministry, at the press conference in an attempt to imply a connection.
Question found defamatory
Oh’s queries were also carried in a press release from Penang Gerakan, and were published in China Press.
However, St James reportedly found that although Oh’s remarks were framed as a question, they were defamatory in nature and did not qualify as fair comment.
The news portal quoted the judge saying that Oh’s statements were neither factual nor in the public interest, and he found no legal or moral duty for Oh to publish them.
The judge also ruled that China Press had defamed Lim by publishing Oh’s comments without attempting to verify the allegations or seek the DAP leader’s response, and thus failed to meet the standards of responsible journalism and was not entitled to rely on qualified privilege.
He reportedly said China Press should have been more careful, especially since the remarks were made by a political opponent.
Lim was reportedly represented by K Simon Murali and Kok Yuen Lin, Oh was represented by Baljit Singh and Kernail Singh, while China Press was represented by Yiew Voon Lee and Yiew De Xian. - Mkini

---