Vigneswaran: Loke tried to humiliate me, I will sue

Dewan Negara president SA Vigneswaran said today that he will file a civil suit against Transport Minister Anthony Loke for alleging that he had flouted KLIA's security protocols and dress etiquette.

Vigneswaran claimed that Loke's actions went beyond his capacity as a minister, and were carried out intentionally to humiliate him as the president of the upper house.

"I have told my lawyers that I will sue him, not as a minister, but as an individual, as he had used the MAHB (Malaysia Airport Bhd) to obtain the video of me, to humiliate me as the Dewan Negara president.

"You (Loke) had caused my children to be cursed at using dirty words on social media because you spun the statement.

"Who is this minister to play judge and decide that I had committed a wrongdoing?" he told a press conference in Parliament today.

On Saturday, Loke produced CCTV footage dated Nov 14 which showed Vigneswaran arriving at the airport’s VIP lounge wearing slippers before he was stopped by a KLIA officer.

The transport minister later clarified that the alleged transgression was made public to send a message that officers need not fear VIPs when carrying out their duties.

"I want to send a message to our officers that under the new government, if our officers do they duty according to procedure, and if they face trouble as a result, the minister will defend them," he had said.

As Vigneswaran pointed out, however, officers working for MAHB are not public servants. 

The senator also said that he will file a police report against Loke for allegedly violating the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 when he revealed the contents of the CCTV recording. 

"I don't get it. What did I do that was so wrong that even a minister would behave like this? I don't know. 

"I will file a report under the Personal Data Protection Act (for the CCTV footage) and the minister's statement. 

"We will see. Let the law and the courts decide who is write and who is wrong," he said. - Mkini