.JPG "Datuk Seri Jamal Yunos arrives for court proceedings against former Bersih 2.0 chief Maria Chin Abdullah at the Kuala Lumpur High Court July 23, 2018. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Mukhriz Hazim")
PUTRAJAYA, Oct 22 — The Court of Appeal has fixed April 22 next year to hear Datuk Seri Jamal Md Yunos’ appeal against the High Court's dismissal of his application to strike a defamation lawsuit filed against him by former energy, science, technology, environment and climate change minister Yeo Bee Yin.
The appeal came up for case management via E-Review proceeding before deputy registrar Nor Azah Idris today and attended by Jamal's lawyer Mohammed Nasser Yusof and lawyer Kenny Lee Jun How representing Yeo.
Yeo's lawyer Datuk Sankara N. Nair and Mohammed Nasser, when contacted, confirmed the appeal hearing date.
On Aug 7, this year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed Jamal's application to strike out the suit and ordered him to pay RM2,000 cost.
The Sungai Besar Umno Division chief filed the application to strike out the suit in June this year on grounds that it was premature as investigations by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was still going on.
Yeo filed the suit on June 14, 2017, seeking RM5 million in compensation from Jamal for his defamatory statement over the alleged abuse of Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas) funds.
In the statement of claim, Yeo, who is also Bakri member of parliament, claimed that Jamal had issued a defamatory statement on March 21, 2017, and that the statement was also published by several newspapers, news portals and on Jamal’s Facebook account.
Yeo claimed that Jamal’s statement, among others, gave the impression that she had abused public fund for personal use and painted her as an unethical and unreliable person.
Apart from RM5 million in general damages, Yeo is also seeking compensatory, aggravated and exemplary damages and an injunction to prevent Jamal from repeating the allegations. — Bernama
