KUALA LUMPUR – In an unexpected turn of events, the defamation trial between Seputeh MP Teresa Kok and Umno’s Datuk Seri Jamal Yunos concluded within an hour today when the Sungai Besar division chief decided to represent himself after firing his counsel at the eleventh hour.
The DAP lawmaker, through a Facebook post, said Jamal told the court of his decision to discharge his counsel yesterday afternoon, before then informing judge Datuk Arief Emran that he intends to represent himself in the proceedings.
“He then tried to request for a postponement of the trial to enable to (sic) him to appoint a new lawyer but the judge had rejected his application as this case has been dragged for too long since 2017.
“Over the time, Jamal had filed interlocutory applications that were dismissed one-by-one which has contributed to this delay.
“The judge then ordered the trial to be carried out as scheduled,” wrote Kok.
She said seeing how Jamal is not a lawyer by profession, the Umno man stumbled through the proceedings and was unable to cross-examine Kok or other witnesses.
“He (Jamal) also told the judge he has no witnesses to offer. So, the trial finished in less than an hour,” she wrote.
Kok said judge Arief then fixed July 26 for him to deliver his judgement, adding how she hopes the decision would vindicate her.
The trial between the two politicians stemmed from an allegation Jamal made against Kok and several other Pakatan Harapan (PH) lawmakers back in April 2017 during a press conference he held on March 8.
Jamal had claimed RM2 million was allegedly misappropriated from the Skim Mesra Usia Emas aid fund, which is part of Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor (Yawas), by Kok and several other PH lawmakers.
The Umno man alleged the embezzled funds, initially meant for welfare purposes, were used by the politicians for their personal gain after being withdrawn from Yawas.
Kok’s suit had claimed the defamatory statement, among others, gave the impression that she had misused state government funds for her own use and was an unethical person.
She had sought RM1 million in general damages, compensatory damages, aggravated damages and exemplary damages, and an injunction to prevent Jamal from making such claims again in the media
In November 2020, Jamal saw his application to strike out Kok’s defamation suit dismissed by a three-member Court of Appeal bench, who then ordered him to pay RM7,000 in costs to Kok.
His previous attempt to strike out the defamation suit was thrown out by the high court. – The Vibes, June 8, 2022
