KUCHING: “See you in court!” said Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) youth chairman Michael Tiang and secretary Milton Foo yesterday to Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Deputy Minister Chong Chieng Jen and his special assistant Sim Kiat Leng.
This happened during a press conference at their party’s headquarters and it concerned a letter of demand that Chong and Sim wrote to SUPP Batu Kitang youth secretary, Leonard Tan Soon Huat.
Tiang and Foo said after going through the letter of demand they could not find any element of defamation against Chong and Sim.
He said Tan, as a citizen, has the right to lodge a police report in pursuit of the truth about grass cutting along federal roads in Kuching.
In November and December last year grass cutting was stopped and it caused a public furore with the DAP, PKR, SUPP, city mayors and other public officials making their respective statements about it.
Subsequently on December 28 last year Tan posted on his Facebook page a summary of what was stated by the different leaders.
It was for this that he received two letters of demand from Chong and Sim on March 11.
Tiang felt that lodging a police report as Tan did is a fundamental civil rights for all Malaysians as the police cannot initiate an investigation without such a report.
He said Tan’s report was to get the police to look into the matter, which is normal and a formal way of dealing with such a matter.
“It is a citizen’s way of seeking to redress a wrong and does not constitute defamation or injury to anyone’s character. I see Chong’s demand as a way of oppressing a person who wants to know the truth,” said Tiang.
He and Foo said they won’t take Chong’s move lying down, adding that Chong as a parliamentarian and a deputy minister could table a bill in Parliament to stop people from lodging police reports.
As things stand, Tiang and Foo said they could not find any law prohibiting anyone from lodging a police report.
“Therefore, on behalf of SUPP, we maintain that Tan did not make any defamatory remarks on his Facebook page against Chong and Sim as alleged. We are prepared to see them in court. Tan will not apologise,” they said.
