KUALA LUMPUR: Bintulu Member of Parliament, Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing yesterday withdrew his libel suit against former MCA president, Tan Sri Ong Tee Keat over an article published in the New Sunday Times in 2009.
Lawyer Chan Tse Yuen, representing Ong, when met by reporters, said Tiong as the plaintiff, withdrew the suit after the reporter who wrote the article, Joseph Sipalan, in his testimony in court, stated that he had never interviewed Ong.
Chan said High Court judge Datuk Lau Bee Lan should be giving her decision on the suit today after hearing the evidence from the plaintiff’s three witnesses including Ong.
However, he said, during the case management in chambers today, Tiong’s lawyer, Prem Ramachandran informed that his client wished to withdraw the suit.
Chan said the court then struck out the plaintiff’s suit with no liberty to file a fresh suit and also ordered Tiong to pay RM40,000 in costs to Ong.
Tiong filed the defamation suit on Oct 12, 2009, naming the New Straits Times Press (NSTP) Berhad, its former group editor Datuk Syed Nadzri Syed Harun, reporter Joseph Sipalan and Ong as defendants.
However, Tiong later withdrew his claims against NSTP, Syed Nadzri and Sipalan.
In his statement of claims, Tiong claimed that Sipalan who was at the time an NST reporter had written an article with the heading, ‘Chua and Tiong in cahoots’, which was published in the New Sunday Times in 2009.
Ong who came to court today, said he was surprised of being informed that the plaintiff wished to withdraw the suit.
“After such a long legal hassle for eight years, it came as a surprise but certainly a pleasant surprise to me. It is a present for the Chinese New Year,” Ong said. — Bernama