KUALA LUMPUR: Former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has been awarded RM2.5 million in damages in a defamation lawsuit he filed against Mohd Rasyiq Mohd Alwi, also known as Ustaz Abu Syafiq, over social media posts related to the Covid-19 vaccine made three years ago.
High Court Judge Datuk Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin Shah Raja Mohzan also awarded RM50,000 in costs to the former Rembau Member of Parliament.
On Jan 25, 2022, Khairy sued Mohd Rasyiq for allegedly making several defamatory statements, including posting three videos and photos on ‘Ustaz Abu Syafiq’s’ Instagram on Oct 20, 2021, and Jan 6 and 10, 2022.
Khairy claimed that the defamatory statements meant, among other things, that he lied and deceived the public by claiming that he had been given the Covid-19 vaccine and received the third dose, as well as falsifying information regarding his vaccination status.
Judge Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin, in his judgment said, the court found that the impugned statements, in their natural and ordinary meaning, impute dishonourable or discreditable conduct and a lack of integrity to the plaintiff.
“As a result, these statements tend to lower the plaintiff’s reputation in the eyes of right-thinking members of society, which has an adverse and direct effect on his reputation in government and exposes him to hatred, contempt, ridicule, or avoidance by that society.
“These statements are inherently damaging to the plaintiff’s ministerial and personal reputation. As a result, I agree with the plaintiff after reviewing the testimony and documents provided by him, indicating that such statements are unquestionably false, baseless, unsubstantiated, and unwarranted,” he said.
The judge said the court accepted the plaintiff’s evidence, including that the claim about the third vaccine dose requirement for Malaysian Muslims performing umrah is true, as it matches Saudi Arabia’s rule for those who received the Sinovac or Sinopharm vaccines.
“The plaintiff did not discuss specific vaccine brand requirements for umrah or haj. At the press conference on Dec 28, 2021, the plaintiff emphasised the Ministry of Health’s intention to cooperate with the tourism companies managing the Umrah package to ensure that all Malaysians wishing to perform Umrah would receive their booster doses.
Judge Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin said this case should serve not only as a lesson to the defendant, but also to others not to spread unverified, unprovoked and false information, especially in a time of life-and-death crisis.
“Moreover, the publication of a photograph of one of the plaintiff’s children is something that must not be tolerated since it would endanger an innocent child. This child had nothing to do with the plaintiff’s roles and responsibilities in the COVID-19 battle,” he said.
The judge said the court also found that such defamatory statements could demoralise and affect the emotional state of frontliners led by the plaintiff at the time.
“Since most of us were not frontliners, we could not comprehend what they had experienced during those critical times, which remains unimaginable even to me.
“Not only were they overwhelmed and swamped with their efforts and full dedication in dealing with the rising number of patients, including critical ones, but they also had to attend to such patients with full devotion without even considering their well-being while thinking about what they might carry home to their families.
“As a consequence, making defamatory statements intended to provoke responses with unsupported and false narratives had aggravated the situation further. The right to champion a cause without distorting the facts and opinions is always noble as long as the relevant laws and moral boundaries are adhered to.
“Therefore, the plaintiff is entitled to the sum of general damages of RM2 million which is RM250,000 for each of the defamatory statements and RM250,000 for exemplary damages, while RM250,000 for aggravated damages, totalling RM2.5 million,” he said.
Before handing down the decision, Raja Ahmad Mohzanuddin expressed his condolences to Khairy on the death of his father-in-law, Malaysia’s fifth Prime Minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, last Monday
Meanwhile, Khairy, when met by the media, said he was grateful for today’s decision.
“I am impressed with the judge’s argument, where he said this (the defamatory statement) not only affected my credibility (when serving as Minister of Health) but also affected the credibility of all parties involved, especially the frontliners (frontline workers) in our efforts to fight COVID-19.
“This is not only a victory for me but also a recognition of the efforts of the Ministry of Health (MOH) and all those involved to free Malaysia from the pandemic,“ he said.
