Court orders Jamal to pay Teresa Kok RM300k for defamation
The Kuala Lumpur High Court today ordered Sungai Besar Umno division chief Jamal Md Yunos to pay RM300,000 to Seputeh MP Teresa Kok as damages for his 2017 speech, where he accused the DAP lawmaker of abusing Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) funds.
Judicial Commissioner Mohd Arief Emran Arifin made the order after allowing Kok's defamation suit against the Umno leader...
The Kuala Lumpur High Court today ordered Sungai Besar Umno division chief Jamal Md Yunos to pay RM300,000 to Seputeh MP Teresa Kok as damages for his 2017 speech, where he accused the DAP lawmaker of abusing Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) funds.
Judicial Commissioner Mohd Arief Emran Arifin made the order after allowing Kok's defamation suit against the Umno leader.
"... the defendant has failed to prove his defence," Arief said when delivering his judgment.
"(I hereby order the defendant to pay) damages, including general, aggravated, and exemplary damages, a total of RM300,000.
"The amount is to be paid by the defendant to the plaintiff within 14 days from today."
Arief also ordered Jamal, who was absent from court today, to pay another RM50,000 as costs, and issued an injunction to prohibit him or his agent from repeating the allegation in any format.
Prior to issuing his order, the judicial commissioner asked Kok's counsel SN Nair how much the plaintiff is seeking as damages, to which the lawyer said they were hoping for RM800,000.
Arief then asked Nair and his co-counsel how many views the videos of Jamal's speech had reached. According to Nair, as of 2017, the video had been viewed 2,600 times on Facebook and 1,800 times on YouTube.
Besides Kok, Jamal also claimed that several politicians from the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor had used funds meant for welfare aid for personal gain.
He claimed the politicians withdrew cash from the Yawas fund but never disbursed it to qualified recipients.
‘Good name tarnished’
Speaking to reporters outside the court later, Nair said the judgment today was a "clear indication" that Kok is not a corrupt politician.
"Unfortunately, she had to face the MACC investigation all for nothing just because someone filed a report.
"A good politician's name is tarnished, the damage has been done," he said.
Kok meanwhile expressed her happiness at the court's decision and said she hoped Jamal would not repeat the accusation in the future.
The DAP MP also recalled the ordeal she went through during the MACC investigation, which was initiated because of Jamal's report.
"I'd like to thank the court for vindicating me. I remember when Jamal lodged an MACC report against me... they came to my office and took away all the files and also interrogated me and my assistant a few times.
"So we were forced to answer all sorts of questions. We had to go through all this mental torture just because Jamal made a report against me.
"I'm surprised he didn't show up. I hope he will not repeat this anymore," she said.
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