Judge suggests Dzulkefly, Asyraf settle out of court

 

Dzulkefly Ahmad (left) and Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki should settle their dispute amicably before the trial begins in January next year, says a judge.

PETALING JAYA: The sessions court in Kuala Lumpur today proposed that health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad and Umno secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki settle their defamation suit amicably.

Dzulkefly had sued Asyraf for defamation over allegations the latter made on Twitter of cronyism and nepotism, Bernama reported.

Lawyer Shahrul Fazli Kamarulzaman, representing Asyraf, said judge Norakhmar Sani proposed an amicable resolution in chambers today, in the presence of counsel Jaden Phoon, representing Dzulkefly.

“The judge said the parties can reach a settlement before the trial scheduled for Jan 20-24 next year,” he told reporters.

Shahrul said the trial was supposed to be today, but it was postponed because Dzulkefly was not feeling well.

On April 12, 2022, Dzulkefly filed a lawsuit against Asyraf, accusing him of posting defamatory content on his Twitter account on Aug 24, 2020, which was also shared on Asyraf’s Facebook page.

In the statement of claim, Dzulkefly alleged the post suggested he was engaged in cronyism and nepotism – specifically the appointment of his daughter to the Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM) board – implying that Dzulkefly misused his power and position as health minister.

Dzulkefly said the claims were baseless because, when his daughter was appointed, AIM was overseen by a Barisan Nasional government-appointed board of trustees and he was not a minister then.

“My daughter’s merit and qualifications were objectively evaluated. The health ministry issued a media statement confirming it was not involved in my daughter’s appointment,” Dzulkefly said.

As such, he is seeking compensation for general damages, aggravated damages and exemplary damages, as well as an injunction to prevent the defendant from reposting or spreading the defamatory content.

Dzulkefly also wants Asyraf to publish a written apology through a medium of Dzulkefly’s choice.

Asyraf said the post was not made with any malicious intent to harm the plaintiff’s reputation or integrity. - FMT