THE High Court today ordered Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng to pay RM2 million in damages to MonSpace (M) Sdn Bhd and its founder Jessy Lai Cha Suang for defamation. 

Lim must pay a sum of RM500,000 and RM1 million to Lai and the company, as well as aggravated damages of RM500,000 to both plaintiffs, besides costs of RM250,000.  

Judge Akhtar Tahir ordered the defendant to make a public apology in all vernacular newspapers and social media within seven days after the judgement was perfected.  

In his brief judgment, Akhtar said the court found that the plaintiffs had proven their claims against the defendant and that his statements tarnished the reputation of the plaintiffs.  

He further said, in the statement of claim, the plaintiffs had mentioned five instances in statements made by the defendant that were alleged to be defamatory.  

The judge said the defendant did not deny making the statements nor the publication of them, and it was also clear that it referred to both plaintiffs. 

“The statements clearly connote that the plaintiffs had bribed senior government officials and carried out illegal activities as well as cheated 19 Chinese nationals,” he said when delivering today’s decision via Zoom. 

Judge Akhtar also pointed out that the defendant should have stopped making reports to the enforcement agency for them to investigate fully the allegations.  

“Instead, in the court’s view, the defendant had gone beyond his duty, not only as an MP, but even as a person and acted like a vigilante against the plaintiffs in making these accusations. The defendant should have verified the facts before making such serious accusations. In this case, the defendant did not call any witnesses who were allegedly the source of his information. 

“As an MP, it was his duty to verify information, not only as an MP, even as a normal person you must verify information. The defendant as the MP especially cannot be trigger happy and shoot from the hip,” he said. 

The judge said the court also noted that the defendant took to the streets with 19 Chinese nationals to protest against the plaintiffs.  

“This was also unwarranted… the defendant was given an opportunity to redeem himself and during the case management of this case, the plaintiffs only asked for an apology to be made but the defendant failed to do that,” he added. 

In the suit filed in June 2019, Lai said Lim had asserted that she was running an illegal business and had cheated Chinese investors. The MP’s statements, published in the English and Chinese media, had implied that she was a dishonest person. 

She said Lim had made the statements in May 2017 and November 2018 when he took a group of individuals, purportedly MonSpace’s investors, to her office and subsequently lodged police reports against her. 

She asserted that Lim’s statements had pressured the authorities, including the police, Bank Negara Malaysia and the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry, to take action against her. 

Lawyer Ivanpal Singh Grewal represented Lai and the company while counsel Guok Ngek Seong acted for Lim. 

Lim has filed an appeal over today’s decision. – Bernama, March 16, 2023.