Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Jamil Khir Baharom, in his capacity as a cabinet member, cannot file a suit for defamation over matters of public interest.

This is the basic ground in the defence filed by National Oversight and Whistleblowers (NOW) director Akmal Nasir in the defamation suit Jamil Khir filed against him.

Jamil Khir is suing Akmal for alleging that Jamil Khir had misused funds meant for orphans.

"The conduct, behaviour and acts performed by the plaintiff (Jamil) are matters of extreme public importance and interest, which must be subject to public discussion as well as open to robust criticism and scrutiny.

"Further, the plaintiff is a member of the BN government which, through its various representatives and agencies, has espoused the need for public transparency, honesty and integrity at all levels of government.

"By reason of the above, the defendant (Akmal) contends that as this action is brought by the plaintiff in his official capacity as MP and cabinet minister, the plaintiff is barred from suing the defendant for defamation and/or the plaintiff has no legal standing to institute this action," Akmal's lawyers said in their defence submission that was filed on Tuesday.

Akmal, who is also PKR Youth strategy director, is being sued by Jamil Khir after refusing to apologise to the minister.

The NOW director had claimed that Jamil had went on a trip to the United States, costing RM410,978, and the expenses were allegedly paid for by Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam Malaysia (Yapeim) through a subsidiary's fund meant for orphans and poor children.

Akmal then called for Jamil Khir to resign from the cabinet.

Malicious intent

In his defence, Akmal said the resignation call was protected under the right to free speech.

He added that he had a moral duty to relay information about alleged misappropriation of funds by a public figure.

Citing invoices for the US trip billed to Yayasan Pembangunan Anak Yatim/Miskin (Pemangkin), he also said his allegations were based on facts.

Jamil Khir has denied misappropriating funds from Yapeim, which comes under his purview.

Instead, he claimed that his trip to the US in May last year was upon invitations by various agencies under his purview, including Yapeim.

The visit, Jamil Khir said, was also organised by the Malaysian Embassy in the US and Education Malaysia Chicago in conjunction with an event dubbed "Mid West Games", which was attended by 1,000 Malaysian students in the US and Canada.

In his statement of claim, Jamil Khir said Akmal had acted maliciously with intent to hurt his reputation.

He is suing for damages. Akmal is hoping to strike out Jamil Khir's suit against him with costs.​