Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has initiated legal action against one of his most vocal critics, Jimmy Lim, adviser of a local NGO called Chant Awareness, over his remarks in news portal Free Malaysia Today alleging that the former was responsible for the destruction of the state’s heritage.

Lim, who has vehemently denied the allegations, is also suing FMT and its reporter Athi Shanker for the report entitled ‘Guan Eng has failed, says NGO’, dated Dec 6.

Lim wants an apology and retraction published prominently in the news portal no later than 24 hours of the notice sent today, and for the defendants to inform his lawyer of the damages they are prepared to pay for the injury to his reputation, for the “embarrassment, harm and distress” he has suffered.

In his letter to the three defendants, the lawyer acting for Lim, Mureli Navaratnam, said that the article contains statements which are “false and defamatory” in their natural and ordinary meaning and/or by innuendoes understandable by any ordinary reasonable person.

“The content of the article cast severe aspersions against our client’s character and reputation which has been brought unto the public odium in personam, as senior politician, statesman, MP and as the Right Honourable CM of Penang,” said Mureli.

Lim took offence at the article quoting Jimmy as saying that the CM had “allowed demolition of many heritage and historical structures, even in the vicinity of the city, to make way for sky-scraping structures, especially hotels and posh condominiums”.

Lim was also irked that Jimmy accused him of allowing the destruction of natural heritage sites such as the ‘Botak Hill’ in Bukit Relau in Gelugor.

In this case, the developer - General Accomplishment - was convicted and fined RM30,000 in court for illegal clearing of a patch on the hill, visible to the public eye, and Lim has applied for stiffer sentencing on the company.

According to Mureli, the article also pointed out that the state administration allowed the demolition of the Indian heritage village of Kampung Buah Pala in 2009, a year after Pakatan Rakyat gained rule in Penang.

“Our client has suffered damage and ridicule due to the libellous nature of the article which continues to be published by FMT as at the date of the notice.”

‘Checks and balances entrenched in constitution’

In an immediate response, Chant spokesperson Yan Lee said the group always had high regards for Lim, often greeting him with the phrase “Thank you for a new Malaysia” in their press releases.

“When our adviser was served with a notice for action for defamation, we were saddened and disappointed. A statesman suing a group of NGOs,” said Yan Lee.

“Has anyone heard of the president of the USA or PM of UK suing their critics?” he asked.

“We live in a democracy and the system of check and balances is entrenched in our constitution,” Yan Lee added.

He said the NGO has been questioning and putting pressure on the state in cases like the Pykett illegal demolition, with the hope that it wont happen in other places in Penang as “we are a Unesco Heritage City”.

He added that the group makes noise about property development with the hope that archaic laws and  regulations can be updated.