Pua fails to set aside interim injunction obtained by PM

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PUTRAJAYA: Petaling Jaya Utara Member of Parliament Tony Pua Kiam Wee has lost his appeal to lift an interim interparte injunction obtained by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak against him (Pua) over a video clip the Prime Minister claimed was defamatory.

The Court of Appeal’s 3-man bench comprising Datuk Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, Puan Sri Zaleha Yusof and Datuk Yaacob Md Sam yesterday unanimously dismissed Pua’s appeal to set aside a High Court decision in granting Najib the injunction order to restrain Pua from repeating the alleged slanderous allegations.

Yaacob, who delivered the court’s judgment said the court found that Najib had satisfied the requirements for an interim injunction to be allowed.

He said there was evidence of Pua’s intention to repeat the defamatory statement. Yaacob also said the court took judicial notice that the Attorney-General had made a decision that Najib had committed no wrongdoing in relation to 1MDB.

He said investigations were also carried out by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Royal Malaysia Police, Bank Negara and the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the results which have been disclosed to the public by the Attorney-General and the MACC cleared Najib of any criminal wrongdoing.

Yaacob said the High Court judge did not commit any misdirection of law when granting Najib the interim injunction.

Najib sued Pua in his personal capacity, alleging that Pua had made defamatory statements against him on live video relating to the tabling of a Private Member’s Bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 or RUU355.

The Prime Minister claimed the video clip uploaded by Pua or his agents on the defendant’s official Facebook site, lasting two minutes and 21 seconds and entitled ‘BN Govt abandons all Bills to give precedence to PAS RUU355 Private Member’s Bill’, could be accessed widely and freely on the internet.

On April 21, last year, the High Court allowed Najib’s application for an ex-parte injunction to restrain Pua from further publishing similar or the same words.

On Jan 26, this year, the appellate court bench reserved decision in Pua’s appeal after hearing submissions from counsels.

The court subsequently, fixed today to deliver the verdict.

After the court’s decision, Najib’s lawyer, Datuk Wira Mohd Hafarizam Harun told reporters the trial of the lawsuit was fixed on April 23.

Meanwhile, lawyer Gobind Singh Deo representing Pua said he would be filing for leave to appeal to the Federal Court. — Bernama