PAS man demands RM1.5m from Steven Sim for alleged defamation after accused of ‘racist’ remarks against Chinese army officer

BUKIT MERTAJAM, July 4 — Sungai Buloh PAS chief Zaharudin Muhammad said yesterday he had attempted to serve a letter of demand to Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim Chee Keong for alleged defamation.

On Facebook, the son-in-law of PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang said he had gone to Sim’s constituency service centre twice, but the office was closed.

“The most crucial defamatory claim I’m suing over concerns an insult to the Malaysian Armed Forces. I am 200 per cent confident that he has no grounds to spin this in court,” he posted on Facebook.

Free Malaysia Today reported that Zaharudin is seeking RM1.5 million in damages over Sim’s remark against him over the promotion of a Chinese officer in the Malaysian Armed Forces.

The letter, dated yesterday and issued by legal firm Nur Maidin & Co, accuses Sim of making defamatory statements and demands a public apology along with a retraction of the comments.

Last week, Sim had stood firm on his accusations against Zaharudin, whom he had called racist for a remark on Malaysian Armed Forces lieutenant-general Datuk Johnny Lim Eng Seng.

The DAP deputy secretary-general said he was merely speaking out against a racist act and defended the Armed Forces.

This comes after Zaharudin said he will consult his lawyer whether to take legal action against Sim, or news aggregator portal World of Buzz for allegedly “spinning” his words.

Sim had posted on Facebook that Lim’s long-standing service should be recognised, not questioned, and described the attack by Zaharudin as “racist, seditious, and treasonous”.

Sim said Zaharudin’s remark also appeared to undermine the Armed Forces and the trust of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, who is the Supreme Commander.

Lim’s promotion had marked a historic milestone, as he became the first ethnic Chinese officer to be promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general in the armed forces.

In response, Zaharudin had speculated that Malaysia’s 50th prime minister in 2058 could be a Chinese individual, framing the scenario as a possible outcome of Lim’s promotion.

The post, which also compared the Malaysia’s immigration policies to the Zionist settlement of Palestine, was then deleted.

Islamist party PAS has since said it does not support the social media post by one of its leaders on the promotion, saying it was the personal opinion of the individual involved and “entirely contrary” to PAS’ policies and values.