Malaysia's PM Najib sues former MCA president for defamation

KUALA LUMPUR - Prime Minister Najib Razak on Thursday (Oct 29) sued former MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik for making defamatory statements against him.

In a statement of claim, Mr Najib sought an order for Dr Ling to publish a written apology in newspapers or magazines, saying that Dr Ling’s words had “gravely injured” his reputation.

He added that the defamatory words were an “attack on his morals and character” and that they had caused him to be labelled as a “dishonest, untrustworthy and irresponsible person”. Dr Ling had uttered the defamatory words with a malicious intention to put him in a position of public scandal and contempt, he said.

In a letter of demand served to Dr Ling on Oct 5, Mr Najib demanded him to cease making any further defamatory statements and to issue a “full and unequivocal” written apology and retraction of his statements.

Mr Najib said Dr Ling had falsely and maliciously made the slanderous statements against him while attending a ceremony at a university college. The statements were published on a news portal on Oct 3.

However, Dr Ling (right) replied on Oct 8 that he did not acknowledge or admit to any of the statements that had been set out in the letter. This “clearly showed that the defendant had no regrets whatsoever on the publishing of the said impugned words and it shows the defendant's real attitude," said Mr Najib.

The Prime Minister said that Dr Ling’s words bore implications that he had misused government funds belonging to government investment company 1MDB, that he had abused his power as the leader of a political party and that he was not competent or qualified to be the leader of the government or Prime Minister of Malaysia.

Mr Najib also said that the article was taken to mean that he had misappropriated public funds into his personal account, and misused them to gain profit for his own personal interest, charges which he has claimed are baseless and without any proof.

In the statement, Mr Najib said that his “reputation has been gravely injured following the publication of the defamatory words and caused contempt to him on the social media and mass media as the defamatory article had been widely shared".

The document added that the defamatory words were an attack "on the plaintiff's (PM Najib) moral and character in the sense that he is now being labelled as a dishonest, untrustworthy and irresponsible person.”

Mr Najib said that Dr Ling was fully aware and intended for the defamatory article to be published, knowing that it would draw readers both of virtual or mainstream media in Malaysia and internationally.

"The serious and scandalous nature of the said defamatory words has caused serious loss and irreparable damage to the plaintiff's (PM Najib) reputation, specifically but not limited to his relationship with the people in the country and internationally," the document said. 

- Bernama/yt