Yong says to appeal

KOTA KINABALU: Yong said they would appeal against the High Court decision.

"This case will strengthen our fighting spirit. We will continue our struggle for Sabah," he said, to applause from about 300 party members and supporters, who patiently waited for the decision.

They then moved to the Datuk Chong Thien Vun Park opposite the courthouse where Yong addressed to the group and thanked all his witnesses before ending the session with the State anthem.

Chong Thien Vun was among the newly-sworn in State Ministers who died in the crash.
Among those giving Yong moral support were State Reform Party (Star) Sabah Chapter Chairman Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, former Berjaya Finance Minister Datuk Mohammad Noor Mohd Mansoor and SAPP leaders.

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Harris is awarded RM1m damages

Jo Ann Mool

KOTA KINABALU: Former Chief Minister Tan Sri Harris Salleh won his libel suit against Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) and its President Datuk Yong Teck Lee for insinuating that he was involved in causing the Double Six tragedy that killed then newly-elected CM Tun Fuad Stephens and 10 others on board the Nomad aircraft on June 6, 1976.

High Court Judge Dato' Abdul Rahman Sebli on Wednesday ordered Yong and SAPP to pay RM1 million to Harris in damages. Yong, is himself, a former Chief Minister.

Abdul Rahman also ordered the defendants to pay eight per cent interest perannum from the date of publication of the statements to the date of full payment and to bear the costs.

Abdul Rahman refused a stay of execution applied for by the defendants' counsel Datuk Simon Shim pending an appeal, ruling that there were no special circumstances in the application. Harris was not present.

This was the second major court victory for Harris against Yong. The previous case in 1998 which Yong lost was on technical grounds pertaining to the election of political billboards without identifying the agency involved. It resulted in Yong losing his Likas State seat and being barred from taking part in elections for five years.
The seat was won by Liew Teck Chan, also of SAPP, in a by-election.

Harris, who filed the writ of summons in the latest case on July 19, 2010, had claimed for general damages, aggravated and exemplary damages of not less than RM50 million from Yong, who he named as first defendant and SAPP as second defendant, for libel.
Abdul Rahman ruled that there was nothing wrong for Yong to call for a re-investigation of the air crash.

But he crossed the line separating fair comment and malice aforethought when he insinuated that Harris had "blood on his hands" without making any attempt to verify the truth of the alleged "new information" revealed by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.

He said he was satisfied that Harris had proved his case on the balance of probability against the defendants.

"There is nothing wrong for the first defendant to call for a re-investigation of the tragedy but when he insinuated that the plaintiff had 'blood on his hand' and should be investigated for a possible criminal act without making any attempt to verify the truth of the alleged new information revealed by Tengku Razaleigh, the first defendant had crossed the line separating fair comment and malice aforethought.

"There is no mistaking the undertone, the undercurrent and the underpinning of the two statements. Each of them, in particular. the second statement, provoked speculation that the plaintiff knew in advance that something sinister was going to happen to the Nomad aircraft and that he had left the late Tun Fuad Stephens to die so that he could take over as Chief Minister of Sabah.

"The use of the words 'crime' and 'assassinations' albeit in reference to the assassinations of John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King and Benazir Bhutto were calculated to give maximum impact to the insinuation of conspiracy to assassinate. The statements are, therefore, defamatory of the plaintiff," held Abdul Rahman, when allowing Harris' claim in terms of the Statement of Claim.

"As for damages, I consider a global sum of RM1 million to be fair and reasonable having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the conduct of the defendants at the trial and in their written submissions.

"In their written submissions the defendants continued to attack the character and credibility of the plaintiff as a witness and contended that the plaintiff, being a retired politician, is not even worth a penny. This is demeaning to the plaintiff," said Abdul Rahman, reading out his judgement to a packed courtroom.

In his statement of claim, Harris, who was represented by counsel Yunof Maringking and Trevor Maringking, had said that press reports made by Yong in the Daily Express in calling for the file on the tragedy to be reopened in view of Tengku Razaleigh's account of how he left the illfated aircraft at the very last moment that saved his life, also opened up old specula- tion of how the plane crashed in Sembulan.

In this respect, Harris said in their ordinary and natural meaning, Yong's statement suggested that he (Harris) conspired with others to assassinate Tun Fuad Stephens and several State ministers.

Yong's statement also insinuated that Harris conspired with others to grab power and to become the Chief Minister of Sabah himself after the demise of the late Tun Fuad Stephens, by way of assassination.

He said Yong's statement was also understood to mean that he (Harris) had conspired with others to facilitate the signing of the petroleum agreement between the Sabah and Federal governments as well as to hand over the petroleum wealth of Sabah to Petronas or Federal Government.

Harris said Yong had sensationalised the Nomad air crash as a political tool to maintain his and his party's political momentum for the next Parliamentary and State elections, especially when they (SAPP) intended to contest in all or as many constituencies as possible.

He claimed Yong and SAPP sensationalised Tengku Razaleigh's innocent statement on the Double Six tragedy to boost the moral and public support for them.

Harris said he and Yong are long time political rivals, hence Yong made the statement as an opportunity to be his political weapon to increase public support towards himself and SAPP.

Harris claimed Yong was politically motivated to tarnish his good name and standing in society for having signed the agreement under which Sabah only gets five per cent.

He had also sought an injunction to restrain the defendants whether by them- selves or their servants or employee or agents from printing and publishing further the statements and similar libel in any form or means.