KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court on Tuesday (Sept 8) dismissed an application by a Facebook account owner to defer payment of RM250,000 in damages awarded to Perlis Mufti Datuk Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin in a defamation suit over posts linking him to GISB Holdings Sdn Bhd (GISBH).
Judicial Commissioner Rihaida Rafie also dismissed an application by defendant Mohd Nawawi Abdul Razak, 39, to defer the order requiring him to remove the defamatory post, refrain from publishing similar statements on social media and pay RM50,000 in costs.
However, the court allowed Mohd Nawawi's application to postpone the order requiring him to apologise to the plaintiff through his Facebook account pending the outcome of his appeal.
Earlier, lawyer Mahmud Abdul Jumaat, representing Mohd Nawawi, submitted that denying the postponement would prejudice his client, who had filed an appeal against the decision at the Court of Appeal on Aug 12.
"If the appeal is allowed later, the apology made will affect the defendant's reputation. As for the damages, my client is unable to pay due to financial difficulties, and he has deleted the post," he said.
Mohd Asri's lawyer Fatima Zulaikha Ahmad Bashri objected to the application, arguing that financial problems did not amount to "special circumstances" warranting a stay of execution.
On July 31, Rihaida allowed part of the suit filed by Mohd Asri, 55, after finding that the first of the four statements published by the defendant was defamatory, while the plaintiff had failed to prove that the remaining three statements fulfilled the legal elements of defamation.
The court ordered Mohd Nawawi to pay RM250,000 in global damages, with interest at five per cent per annum from the date of judgment until full settlement, as well as RM50,000 in costs to Mohd Asri.
It also granted the plaintiff's application requiring the defendant to publish an apology on his Facebook account within seven days from today, remove the defamatory posts from the same account, and refrain from publishing any further defamatory statements through the account, whether personally or through his employees.
Mohd Asri, who is also a lecturer, filed the suit on Oct 10, 2024, alleging that the defendant had published four defamatory statements on the Facebook account 'Mohd Nawawi Abd Razak' on Sept 20, 2024, which were accessible to the public.
He claimed the posts implied, among other things, that he was a leader or supporter of the GISBH movement, had close ties with the group, and condoned superstitious practices in return for benefits from GISBH.
In his statement of defence filed on Nov 29, 2024, Mohd Nawawi denied the allegations, contending that the plaintiff's defamation claim was exaggerated, excessive and fabricated to gain the court's sympathy. – Bernama
