The Edge owner serves demand letter to Jho Low for blog attacks

The Edge Media Group owner Datuk Tong Kooi Ong has served a notice to businessman Low Taek Jho demanding he stop lying about the media group and himself through several blogs. – The Edge pic, February 6, 2015. 

The Edge Media Group owner Datuk Tong Kooi Ong has served a notice to businessman Low Taek Jho demanding that he stop "fabricating malicious lies" about him and the news publications under his control.

Tong said his lawyers this morning served the letter of demand on Low, also known as Jho Low, asking him to “cease and desist” from lying about The Edge, The Malaysian Insider and about himself through several blogs.

"I believe Low Taek Jho or Jho Low is the person responsible for the malicious lies and fabrications against The Edge Media Group and I through several blogs using the WordPress blogging platform," he said in a statement today.

Tong, who is the group's executive chairman, has come under fire from blogs, which have been traced back to one person, for media coverage on the debt-ridden state investment vechicle 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

The Edge Malaysia reported on Tuesday that blogger malaysianexpose.wordpress.com who was behind the attacks on Tong and The Edge Media Group was also behind similar onslaughts on former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and banker Datuk Seri Nazir Razak, while running other blogs which published complimentary articles on Low.

One common thread behind the attacks appeared to be the fact that The Edge had been publishing exposes about state investment vehicle 1MDB, while Dr Mahathir had been openly critical of it, even saying it was unnecessary and should be shut down.

The anonymous blogger used the public display and user name "ahrily90" and had written at two blogs, kronismemahathir.wordpress.com and politikukus.wordpress.com, since mid-2014.

The blogs have also attacked Dr Mahathir since last July.

ahrily90 also wrote on two blogs targeting Nazir: kamibukanbodohtau.wordpress.com and corruptednazirrazak.wordpress.com.

The same blogger also wrote on three blogs which praised 1MDB and Jho Low:
bisnes2malaysia.wordpress.com, todayinbusiness.wordpress.com and worldofcorporate.wordpress.com.

However, Low denied being part of the attacks against the trio.

"This article wrongly suggests that Mr Low was somehow involved in the press attacks by an anonymous blogger on Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Datuk Seri Nazir Razak, and Datuk Dr Tong Kooi Ong.

"This is preposterous and completely false," the spokesman said in a statement sent to The Malaysian Insider, referring to the article headlined "EXPOSED! Pro-Jho Low blogger behind attacks on Dr M, Nazir and Edge owner Tong".

"Mr Low respects these individuals for their professional achievements.

"Given the false and improper innuendos made against Mr Low in this report, this matter has been referred to his lawyers," the spokesman added.

Tong said although some of the sites had been shut down, they had been able to download the sites' entire contents and save them before they were taken down.

Tong said the first attack in kronismemahathir.wordpress.com was on January 26 under the title "Mahathir uses The Edge and the Malaysian Insider to take down his own people" by ahrily90.

A follow-up article titled "Rogue betting against ringgit" was published two days later by ahrily90 in both kronismemahathir.wordpress.com and malaysianexpose.wordpress.com.

The second article has since been removed from kronismemahathir.wordpress.com but remains in malaysianexpose.wordpress.com with the author's name changed.

Tong said four days before the first attack on himself and The Edge, a journalist from The Edge had sent a number of questions to 1MDB on a US$975 million loan provided to it by Deutsche Bank in September last year.

The journalist had asked 1MDB if the money was used to principally pay Abu Dhabi’s Aabar Investments PJS to terminate an option to take up a substantial stake in the future IPO of 1MDB’s power assets.

The journalist had also questioned the basis for the options to be valued at such a high price, and had requested that 1MDB reveal the terms of the agreement it signed with Aabar in May 2014 on the termination of the options.

1MDB gave the options to Aabar in return for co-guaranteeing two US dollar bond issues arranged by Goldman Sachs totalling US$3.5 billion in 2012 for the acquisition of power plants.

However, 1MDB responded by saying that it had nothing to add other than what was stated in the company’s 2014 annual report.

"The Edge has published substantially on 1MDB because of concerns, held not only by us, but also by many others in the corporate and banking world and the civil service as well.

"The Edge Media Group, which includes The Edge and The Malaysian Insider, believes in economic and social inclusion. We want to promote transparency and good governance. We love our country and as a media, we have a public duty to report on any issues that are of national importance," said Tong.

Adding that he was a Malaysian and did not hold dual citizenship as alleged, Tong said that in highlighting the challenges the country faces, the Edge Media Group was not sabotaging the nation.

Instead, it believed it would help direct people towards finding solutions for the betterment of the country.

"We highlighted concerns about 1MDB because we are fearful of the fallout for the country should it fail. As it is, 1MDB is already facing financial difficulties. It has failed to pay – missing three deadlines – an RM2 billion loan to a consortium of Malaysian banks.

"All the spinning by 1MDB cannot hide this fact.

"The only reason The Edge has highlighted the problems at 1MDB is to try to get these issues addressed, so that they can be contained and resolved," he said.

- TMI