Nizar rejects post-dated cheque from PAS leader who slandered him
A day after it was revealed that bankruptcy proceedings would be initiated against Perak PAS commissioner Razman Zakaria, the doorbell of the Ipoh-based legal firm hired by Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin rang this morning.
“Around 11.30am, several men came to my office. I was wondering who they were, they turned out to be representatives of Razman who wanted to submit a cheque to my client.
“However, I saw that it was not a current cheque but a post-dated cheque dated Feb 10, 2020,” lawyer Mohd Fitri Asumi told Malaysiakini this afternoon...
- UPDATED 7.20PM | Added Razman's response to Nizar's cheque rejection.
A day after it was revealed that bankruptcy proceedings would be initiated against Perak PAS commissioner Razman Zakaria, the doorbell of the Ipoh-based legal firm hired by Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin rang this morning.
“Around 11.30am, several men came to my office. I was wondering who they were, they turned out to be representatives of Razman who wanted to submit a cheque to my client.
“However, I saw that it was not a current cheque but a post-dated cheque dated Feb 10, 2020,” lawyer Mohd Fitri Asumi told Malaysiakini this afternoon.
According to him, Nizar, who is Perak Amanah deputy chairperson, instructed him not to accept the cheque.
“When I contacted Nizar, he told me the cheque must be current and not post-dated. So I could not accept the cheque,” he added.
The Ipoh High Court had ordered Razman (photo) to pay Nizar RM200,000 in damages for slandering him in an article published in the Malay language daily Sinar Harian on June 2, 2015.
The article was titled “Pendekatan Nizar Mirip DAP" (Nizar's approach resembles DAP's).
In 2016, Nizar filed a RM3 million suit against Razman, claiming the latter's statement was defamatory and had tarnished his image as a politician.
Last November, the Court of Appeal dismissed Razman's appeal and also ordered him to pay RM10,000 in costs to Nizar.
On Monday, Nizar's lawyer said the PAS leader must pay a total of RM254,150 to his client, including cost and interest.
Yesterday, Fitri said Nizar instructed him not to allow further delays with regard to the payment of the damages.
"I have been instructed to initiate bankruptcy proceedings. Yes, soonest," he added.
In an immediate reaction, Razman took a swipe at Nizar, labelling the move as a sign of arrogance.
"When he rejected it, that shows his extreme arrogance, with no willingness to compromise.
"The cheque I gave is not postdated for a year, but only five days. That's not a long time," he told Malaysiakini.
Razman said that he will proceed to once again make payments to Nizar using the same cheque on Feb 10.
"Since he didn't want to receive it today, what can I do? I will use the same cheque to pay on Feb 10.
"If I'm taken to court, if I say I can only afford to pay RM10 a month, what can he say?" he added.
If the bankruptcy proceedings prove successful, Razman would be disqualified as the assemblyperson for Bukit Semanggol.
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