KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 — PAS’ out-of-court settlement with Sarawak Report’s (SR) editor Clare Rewcastle-Brown over allegations that it had received RM90 million from Umno was not an admission of guilt, PAS secretary-general Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan claimed today.
In a statement, Takiyuddin, who is also a lawyer, also called on the party’s members to give their fullest support and undivided loyalty to the Islamist party’s leaders.
“PAS believes and is confident that the step taken by PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang in this matter, is after taking into concern PAS interest, as well as the interest of PAS members as a whole, from all aspects.
“PAS also believes that the agreement for an out-of-court settlement to not pursue the legal action, is not in any way an admission to all the issues and matters raised in this case, and accusations which are made from time to time,” Takiyuddin said.
He said that PAS also throws its full support behind the decision reached between Abdul Hadi and Rewcastle-Brown.
Last month, PAS unexpectedly announced that Abdul Hadi had settled his defamation suit against SR and Rewcastle-Brown out of court, with no order to costs and with both bound to confidentiality.
He filed the suit in 2017 over a 2016 article alleging that several PAS leaders received RM90 million in order to covertly support Umno and Barisan Nasional ahead of the 14th general election.
PAS has been mocked over the out-of-court settlement, but has insisted that it still obtained a moral victory despite SR continuing to carry the offending article on its website.
Former Malaysian Bar president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said PAS must explain to those who contributed to the millions raised towards Hadi’s legal cost in the matter.
Ambiga had been tangentially linked to the case after Rewcastle-Brown claimed the former to be the source of her information for the RM90 million claim.
PAS is currently under investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and several of the party’s leaders are expected to be summoned for questioning.
