KUALA LUMPUR, April 18 — Khairy Jamaluddin has reportedly welcomed the High Court’s decision awarding him RM2.5 million in damages from preacher Mohd Rasyiq Mohd Alwi over defamatory remarks related to his role in the government’s Covid-19 vaccination programme.
According to Sinar Harian, Khairy said the ruling was not about personal compensation but about holding individuals accountable for spreading false claims during a national health emergency, when lives were at stake and frontliners were under immense strain.
“Receiving RM2.5 million is not about the money; rather, the message the court intends to send, which is that slander made during the Covid-19 crisis should never be repeated,” the former health minister reportedly said.
Khairy was quoted as saying that the defamatory statements not only harmed his reputation but also undermined the morale of healthcare workers and public servants fighting the pandemic.
He reportedly said the judgment served as recognition of the sacrifices made by the Health Ministry during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The ruling followed a defamation suit Khairy filed in 2022 over a series of online posts, with the court ultimately finding that Abu Syafiq’s statements were false, harmful, and made in bad faith.
The trial proceeded in Abu Syafiq’s absence, with the court ruling in Khairy’s favour after finding the preacher’s statements to be false and damaging.
A related defamation claim against former Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Lokman Noor Adam was settled amicably last year, with Lokman agreeing to apologise and pay compensation.
