KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 — The High Court today dismissed the defamation suit filed by AirAsia Berhad against former Wangsa Maju MP Wee Chee Keong.
The court ruled that AirAsia had failed to prove malice on Wee’s part over a blog post on the airline’s alleged airport tax debt.
High Court Judge Datuk Su Geok Yiam, in delivering her decision this afternoon said that no damage was done to the plaintiff as a result of the article being published.
“The plaintiff had failed to prove that there was any malice on the defendant’s part in altering or publishing the article,” she said.
Judge Su then ordered the claims brought forward by the plaintiff against the defendant to be dismissed, while ordering RM50,000 in costs to be paid to the defendant.
Wee was represented by lead counsel Khoo Guan Huat, alongside Grace Teoh Wei Shan and Gooi Tang Shun in the conclusion of a six-day trial that began last September.
AirAsia were represented by lead counsel Leonard Yeoh, together with Yeoh Jit Wei and Yeo Yen Hock.
Following proceedings, Wee said he felt relieved after being vindicated.
“I am vindicated. This suit should have not been filed in the first place,” he commented briefly.
In July 2015, AirAsia filed a suit against Wee, the owner of blog http://weechookeong.com, for knowingly and intentionally publishing false and malicious statements defamatory of the low-cost carrier.
The plaintiff said Wee had regularly published many false, misleading and disparaging statements on the blog, including an article entitled “Why Liow & MAHB encouraged AirAsia to owe RM50 million PSC (passenger service charge)/airport tax” dated April 20, 2015.
