Planter ordered to pay RM100,000
The High Court yesterday ordered an oil palm planter to pay RM100,000 damages to former Deputy Chief Minister cum Parti Keadilan Rakyat Sabah chairman Datuk Christina Liew over his malicious statement in a viraled video on social media.
KOTA KINABALU: The High Court here yesterday ordered an oil palm planter to pay RM100,000 damages to former Deputy Chief Minister cum Parti Keadilan Rakyat Sabah chairman Datuk Christina Liew over his malicious statement in a viraled video on social media.
In the court's reserved verdict, Judicial Commissioner Leonard David Shim, who presided the trial, had ordered that judgment be entered against Leksun Injil as follows:
(a) Damages in the sum of RM100,000 to be paid by Leksun to Liew;
(b) An injunction restraining Leksun whether by himself, his servants or agents or otherwise, from publishing or causing to be published or contributing to the publication of the video defamatory of Liew;
(c) Interest on the damages at the rate of five percent per annum from the date of commencement of this action to the date of judgment and thereafter to the date of realisation;
(d) Costs in the sum of RM50,000 to be paid by Leksun to Liew subject to payment of allocatur fee.
Liew had filed a defamation suit against Leksun, 56, the sole defendant, seeking for damages for libel, including aggravated or alternative damages for alleged slander.
She also sought an injunction to restrain Leksun whether by himself, his servants or agents or otherwise from publishing or causing to be published or contributed to the publication of the alleged defamatory video of her.
Liew also sought for costs and such other or further relief as the court deemed fit.
Throughout the trial, Liew had called three witnesses, including herself while Leksun was the sole witness for defendant.
Liew was represented by counsel Datuk Alex Decena and Jordan Kong and counsel Chong Kian Ming represented Leksun.
On July 22, 2020, Leksun, who claimed to be a smallholder for Bagahak Plantation 3, had testified before the judge, among others that he knew that Liew and another were appealing against the Tawau High Court's decision in relation to a land case allegedly linked to Bagahak Smallholders Scheme participants, but what Leksun said in the viral video was not malicious defamatory statements to Liew as all he said was allegedly obtained from a local daily.
Leksun also testified that he (Leksun) understood that Liew and one other's land case was pending an appeal at the Court of Appeal but insisted that the local newspaper had allegedly published the news dated October 26, 2014.