The Penang High Court has ruled in favour of Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow in a defamation case against businessman Tan Sri Tan Kok Ping, awarding RM350,000 in damages and RM50,000 in legal costs.
The case stemmed from remarks made by Tan during a press conference last year concerning the sale of industrial land in Batu Kawan.
Justice Quay Chew Soon found that Chow had successfully proven his case, while Tan failed to substantiate his defenses of justification, fair comment and qualified privilege.
In its judgment, the High Court stated that Tan’s action of making the impugned statement at the media conference was also actuated by malice which arose from the earlier Silver Jubilee Fund episode involving both the Chief Minister and Tan.
The impugned statement consisting of defamatory remarks in Chinese were translated as “incompetent’, ‘ignorant’, and ‘shameless’. Published by six Chinese newspapers as well as The Star, this was found by the High Court to be highly damaging to Chow’s reputation.
As the Chief Minister of Penang, Chow holds significant responsibilities, and the High Court emphasised that public confidence in his integrity and intelligence is critical for his role.
The High Court further noted that Tan had no justification for convening the press conference, as the issue he raised was related to a terminated project. The land deal in question had been voided following the termination of the Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with Umech. The High Court also ruled that Tan’s comments served no public interest, as the subject was no longer relevant.
The judgement highlighted that Tan’s statements were not mere commentary but direct accusations that attacked Chow’s character and competency. The High Court found no basis for a defense of qualified privilege, as Tan had no social, moral, or legal duty to make such damaging allegations.
In determining the damages, Justice Quay considered Chow’s public standing, the gravity of the defamatory remarks, and the lack of any apology or remorse from Tan.
Chow was represented by Simon Murali and Kok Yuen Lin, while Tan was represented by Datuk K. Kirubakaran and Kek Boon Wei.
