Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has forgiven PAS information chief Nasrudin Hassan after the latter made the RM10,000 payment as ordered by the court for a defamatory article against Lim.

Lim's special legal officer Raja Syarafina Raja Shuib noted that Nasrudin's lawyers will be issuing a cheque for the amount of RM10,000 as settlement for costs with respect to the consent judgment order, which also required Nasrudin to withdraw his defamatory article.

"His (Nasrudin) lawyers had said that Nasrudin's tardiness by one week to make the RM10,000 payment should be forgiven.

"Although there was a delay in receiving the payment, the chief minister is willing to forgive Nasrudin since Nasrudin is willing to make payment and comply fully with the consent judgment order.

"We hope this will serve as a closure of this episode," she said in a statement today.

She also declined to respond to "emotional outbursts that skirted around central issues by way of inaccurate rhetoric and personal vilifications".

Yesterday, Nasrudin's lawyer Wan Rohimi Wan Daud had released a statement defending his client's one-week tardiness in paying the RM10,000.

He had also criticised Syarafina for "attacking" Nasrudin on the issue, saying that she was merely trying to sow a negative perception of Nasrudin.

Nasrudin's defamatory article was an Aug 8, 2014 Facebook posting in which he asked: “What is the difference between Kidex and Penang undersea tunnel?”

The Penang High Court had ordered that Nasrudin pay costs, prove that he has regretted making baseless claims against the chief minister and to withdraw the article.