It’s a speech, not a thesis paper, Mastura tells court

 

PAS MP Siti Mastura Muhammad had previously said a BN political guidebook was the source of her claims.

GEORGE TOWN: 

PAS’s Siti Mastura Muhammad told the High Court here today that public speeches, such as those made at ceramahs, do not require deep research like thesis papers.

The Kepala Batas MP said political figures did not follow the rigid standards typically used in academic or research settings, and quoting hearsay was acceptable as long as the speech did not go against the constitution.

“I have never heard of any specific (research) methodology applied to ceramahs by the plaintiffs, and I doubt even the prime minister uses one in his speeches.

That is why as MPs, we need to be open-minded with speeches,

 she said in a defamation suit brought against her by three DAP leaders.

Even some of my speeches and the plaintiffs’ speeches are not agreeable to the PAS leadership. But we understand these matters are political in nature and we answer them from a political point of view,

 she said.

Mastura said her primary source of reference in speeches was the Quran and Sunnah, adding: 

For me, as long as my speech aligns with the Quran and Sunnah, they are the most perfect sources.

Mastura said while she included other sources, the Quran and Sunnah were the foundation of her narratives, particularly when discussing ideologies and issues related to society.

She said the BN Comms guidebook by Barisan Nasional, revealed in the trial earlier as the main source of her controversial speech, was a reliable secondary source of information, as it was published by 

the government

 before the 15th general election.

She said she had learnt from a PAS muktamar where former Umno leader Annuar Musa had said consultants were paid a large sum to come up with playbooks, such as the BN Comms book.

As such, she believed it to be an authoritative source.

Mastura was responding to questions from lawyer for the plaintiffs, SN Nair, who had challenged her use of the BN book.

Nair said the book lacked an author, ISBN number or publisher, making it unreliable as a reference.

He said that primary sources should be the only materials relied upon when making factual statements, especially in speeches, and that Mastura would have adhered to this standard when obtaining her PhD from Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Mastura had previously said the BN book was the source of her claims that, among others, stated that Lim Guan Eng, Lim Kit Siang and Teresa Kok were related to the late communist leader Chin Peng.

The DAP leaders are suing her for defaming them.

Later, Mastura’s counsel Yusfarizal Yusoff told the court that they had failed to subpoena federal minister Zambry Abdul Kadir and deputy minister Shamsul Anuar Nasarah as witnesses in the case.

Both Umno men were instrumental in the BN Comms book creation, according to earlier testimony.

Yusfarizal said both men’s representatives had earlier agreed to appear in court tomorrow but had suddenly rescinded their offer. He then closed the defence’s case.

Justice Quay Chew Soon set Dec 4 for the decision.

RSN Rayer, Jaden Phoon and Wong Guo Jin also represented the plaintiffs, while Yusfarizal, Faizi Che Abu, Nur Iffah Hizwani Omar and Amie Sharif Khairul Faizi represented Mastura. - FMT