GEORGE TOWN: The High Court here has set six days in September to hear three DAP leaders’ defamation suit against PAS’ Kepala Batas MP Siti Mastura Muhammad.
The trial will run from Sept 2-3 and Sept 17-20. Justice Quay Chew Soon fixed the hearing dates during case management on Thursday. Another case management is fixed on May 15.
Advertisement
DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang and his son, Guan Eng, who is the party chairman, filed suits in the High Court here last November against Mastura for alleging they had blood ties with former Communist Party of Malaya (CPM) leader Chin Peng and late Singapore prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.
Mastura is alleged to have made the remarks in a speech in Kemaman, Terengganu, on Nov 4.
In her defence, Mastura said the facts were sourced from a book published by the Barisan Nasional communications department as part of the coalition’s 15th general election (GE15) campaign material.
She also cited the same source for her claims that Kit Siang and Guan Eng were Lee’s cousins, and that DAP vice-chairman Teresa Kok – who is also suing Mastura – is a cousin of Betty Chew, Guan Eng’s wife.
In response to her defence, Kit Siang, Guan Eng and Kok said that the “so-called campaign material had been debunked by BN deputy chairman Mohamad Hasan and former Umno Supreme Council member Isham Jalil” in a news report dated Nov 11, 2023.
The DAP trio said Mastura, who holds a PhD, should have done her due diligence by checking the facts before making the impugned remarks.
