BATTLE lines are being drawn in Malaysia around a global dispute over management qualifications and their value in the modern world.
On one side is the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), a British royal charity, which aims to defend its reputation as a world leader in management and leadership qualifications and certification, helping individuals become world-class business leaders from undergraduate to doctoral level and beyond.
On the other side is prominent British academic economist Dr Geoffrey Williams, who challenged CMI's claims as provost of a private university in Malaysia, saying stakeholder feedback did not support its marketing and promotional claims that CMI qualifications and certification delivered what they promised.
The Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) and the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) investigated the claims, and after two years of coverage in mainstream and social media, the CMI claims to have suffered actual and potential losses of more than £2 million (RM11.6 million) as Malaysian universities sever contracts with the charity.
Over four days from 21-24 September, the High Court will hear arguments from the CMI that Williams had defamed the organisation when he published four articles in 2024 containing data from a small survey of Malaysian universities which suggested that customer satisfaction levels left a lot to be desired.
The CMI had also targeted leading investigative journalist Murray Hunter, who had, in separate articles published afterwards, claimed that the CMI certificates were not accredited in Malaysia and that audited accounts showed financial irregularities and tax avoidance using the tax exemptions of the royal charity as a cover.
The CMI managers, who have been disputing these claims for two years, argue that Williams’ data and analysis are flawed and that he is the “archetype of a source with an axe to grind.”
They claim that their own surveys and stakeholder feedback show that their programmes are among the best in the market and elevate and enhance management experience in demonstrable ways.
Williams will defend himself after discharging his lawyer, Ravi Nekoo, following claims that he was colluding with the CMI lawyers against him.
The CMI, in turn, has also changed their lawyers, Zul Rafique and Partners, and has appointed Datuk Selva Mookiah to represent them. Mookiah had earlier represented the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) in a defamation suit against Hunter, which has since been settled.
Hundreds of pages of documents have been filed for forensic scrutiny.
Almost 300 pages of witness statements covering 500-600 questions and answers will be examined and tested.
Nine witnesses, with three compelled to appear on subpoena, will testify for the CMI, including their CEO Ann Francke, their CFO Lucy Greggains, the charity secretary Elaine McClain and the head of international sales Zain Munir.
Francke, Greggains and McClain will testify by Zoom from England.
They will be joined online by Bob Cryan, the Vice Chancellor of Huddersfield University.
Williams will rely on his own defence and leverage the evidence provided by the CMI itself to make his case. - September 9, 2026
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