KUALA LUMPUR: A veteran politician and former prime minister like Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin should have known it was undesirable to make potentially inflammatory public statements that could spread feelings of ill will during GE15, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (pic).
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In his reply to Muhyiddin’s defence statement against his defamation suit, the Prime Minister and Pakatan Harapan chairman claimed that Muhyiddin had distorted the truth and disseminated falsehoods in respect of his salary as the Selangor government economic adviser, more so when this had been publicly rebutted by Anwar years ago.
Thus, the plaintiff claimed, Muhyiddin’s statement during the GE15 election campaign in Padang Serai last year was defamatory and malicious.
“He ought to have known it is undesirable to make public statements that have a tendency to inflame and promote… discontent or hostility between persons and candidates, to induce any elector or voter before, during and after election, more so when such statements are defamatory and malicious in nature.
“Nonetheless, the defendant proceeded to make the same (impugned words) via his speeches in an election campaign which are… indisputably a contravention of the Election Offences Act 1954,” Anwar said in his reply to the Perikatan Nasional chairman, filed through SN Nair & Partners and dated Feb 16.
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He further claimed that it was not difficult for Muhyiddin to access the publicly available parliamentary Hansard record before making the allegation.
The Tambun MP contended that Muhyiddin, who was running in Pagoh, had no legal duty to issue allegedly false and malicious statements in the Padang Serai constituency.
In the suit, Anwar, 75, claimed that on Dec 5, Muhyiddin made the slanderous remarks against him in a speech during the “Grand Finale Perikatan Nasional Padang Serai” in Taman Selasih, Kulim, in support of candidate Datuk Azman Nasrudin, which was attended by a large crowd.
Anwar is seeking, among others, general damages, aggravated damages, exemplary damages and an injunction to prevent Muhyiddin from continuing to publish or distribute similar defamatory statements.
On Jan 17, Muhyiddin in his statement of defence claimed, among others, that Anwar should not be offended by the criticisms and questions he raised in his speech. – Bernama