The Kuala Lumpur High Court will decide on March 7 whether journalist Joseph Sipalan will have to name his sources for a news report he wrote that led to a civil dispute between two political leaders.

The ‘Chua and Tiong in cahoots?’ news report published by New Straits Times on Sept 6, 2007 led to the civil dispute over the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) project between BN Backbenchers Club president Tiong King Sing and former MCA president Ong Tee Keat.

Lawyers from Tiong and Ong, along with Joseph’s lawyer Bhag Singh, met with Justice Lau Bee Lan in chambers today for this purpose.

Joseph, 32, who had written the report while he was with the New Straits Times , is now working with The Star .

The report was published after he interviewed seven to eight MCA central committee and state committee members who wished to remain anonymous.

azlan Tiong was represented by Prem Ramachandran, while Chan Tze Yuen appeared for Ong, who is also the MP for Pandan.

Justice Lau fixed the date after agreeing to set aside seven days from today for Joseph to file his written reply to the application made by Tiong’s lawyers to force him to reveal his sources.

Tiong’s lawyers made a formal application, on Feb 15, for Joseph to reveal this in court.

This is probably the first time in Malaysia’s legal history that a lawyer in a civil court case is asking the journalist to name his sources.

Prem cited Section 142 of the Evidence Act and said the witness must answer in court, that the witness must answer even if the testimony would incriminate him under Section 132.

Joseph had cited journalism ethics and confidentiality in not revealing the sources for his report.

Tiong bankrolled move to topple Ong?

The Sept 6, 2009, New Straits Times article quotes sources as saying Ong had alleged that both Tiong and MCA president Dr Chua Soi Lek were conspiring to topple him by amassing a RM100 million war chest to mobilise their campaign against Ong.    

The article also suggests that Tiong, then Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd chief executive officer, also wanted to sweep the on-going PKFZ scandal under the carpet.

Following the publication of the article, Tiong filed his defamation suit in October 2009, naming The New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd, its then group editor Syed Nadzri Syed Harun, the writer, and Ong as the parties.

Tiong is seeking an undetermined amount as compensation and an apology from Ong, although he later dropped his demands against New Straits Times , its group editor and the writer.

Even though the article does not directly quote Ong as uttering the allegation, Tiong said that Ong’s silence amounted to his admission.

Ong only said that the contents of the article were not defamatory after he issued the former MCA chief a legal letter dated Oct 1, 2009, Tiong added.

“The allegations in the article are of the worst kind. It gives the impression to the public at large that I am guilty of a criminal conspiracy.

    

“It also suggests that I was actively buying votes within the MCA to cover up a scandal,” Tiong says in his written witness statement.