MUHAMMAD Yusoff Rawther today welcomed a defamation suit filed by Anwar Ibrahim’s political secretary, Farhash Wafa Salvador Rizal Mubarak, after accusing the Perak PKR chief of being violent.

Yusoff branded the civil suit as an attempt to distract the public from the core issue at hand.

“I refer to media reports on a supposed suit brought against my good self by a flunkey to Anwar Ibrahim.

“Although my lawyer has informed me that he has yet to receive it, I will vigorously defend any and all allegations against me and, therefore, I welcome this suit.

“This is simply an attempt to distract the public and me from the core issue at hand,” he said in a statement today.

Farhash is suing Yusoff, Anwar’s former researcher assistant, for defaming him in a press conference on December 4 last year.

Yusoff said he was sexually assaulted by Anwar and that police failed to act on his report, accusing Farhash of assaulting him at the PKR president’s office in Petaling Jaya last May.

The Attorney-General’s Chamber recently dropped the sexual assault case against Anwar, citing lack of evidence.

Farhash, in his suit, said Yusoff maliciously published the defamatory words against him with the knowledge and intent that the words will be carried by local media, and that the related video recording will be uploaded to Facebook and other social media platforms.

He said Yusoff’s words painted him as a bully and criminal who is violent and disreputable, among others.

Meanwhile, Yusoff said he hoped that the suit will be the beginning for the truth.

Farhash is seeking general, aggravated and exemplary damages as well as an injunction to stop Yusoff from further publishing and/or continuing to publish defamatory words against him.

The matter is up for case management before the Kuala Lumpur High Court registry at 9am tomorrow. – January 27, 2020.