KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 16): The High Court here has ordered former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to pay RM400,000 to DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng by year’s end, and the remaining RM1 million by Jan 27 next year.
Judge Roz Mawar Rozain ordered Muhyiddin to do so in an in-chambers matter on Monday. She had granted this conditional stay to Muhyiddin to pay the amount, with costs of RM5,000.
On Dec 9, Lim filed a bankruptcy notice against Muhyiddin for failing to pay the RM1.402 million judgement (including RM50,000 in costs, and allocatur of RM2,000) ordered by the High Court on Nov 8.
The action was taken after Muhyiddin applied to postpone the payment of the judgement debt on the same day, citing that the RM1.4 million amount is substantial and he needed time to gather the amount, but was willing to deposit 50% of the amount in a fixed deposit account to be held by Lim’s lawyer, pending the hearing and disposal of his appeal at the Court of Appeal.
On Nov 8, the court ordered Muhyiddin to pay RM1.35 million in damages to Lim for defamation relating to the alleged revocation of tax exemption for Yayasan Albukhary. The court also ordered Muhyiddin to pay RM50,000 in costs.
Lim filed the defamation suit against Muhyiddin on March 27 last year, for making three defamatory statements against him in Facebook posts dated March 9, 11, and 12, 2023.
Lim claimed that the defamatory statements implied he abused his position and power by authorising or directing the Inland Revenue Board to impose taxes and penalties on Yayasan Albukhary, even though the charitable foundation was granted an exemption.