PETALING JAYA: The Court of Appeal today reserved judgment on home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s appeal against the Alor Setar High Court’s decision ordering him to pay RM600,000 in defamation damages to Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor.
The defamation case concerns statements about rare earth elements, and allegations that funds allocated under the Malaysian Road Records Information System (Marris) had been misused.
A three-member bench, led by Justice Azhahari Kamal Ramli, reserved judgment after hearing submissions from Saifuddin’s counsel, Razlan Hadri Zulkifli, and Sanusi’s counsel, Yusfarizal Yussoff, Bernama reported.
“We have fixed Oct 16 for case management to set a date for delivering the decision,” said Azhahari, who sat with Justices Ong Chee Kwan and Radzi Harun.
On Aug 24, 2025, the Alor Setar High Court allowed Sanusi’s suit against Saifuddin after finding the home minister liable for defamation.
The court awarded Sanusi RM600,000 in global damages, comprising general, aggravated and exemplary damages, plus RM70,000 in costs.
Earlier, Razlan submitted that Sanusi’s claim over either statement should be dismissed if the Court of Appeal found that they did not convey the actionable meaning on which the High Court had based its finding of liability.
“If a narrower defamatory meaning survives, justification and fair comment fall to be determined against that narrower meaning and the factual substratum established in the evidence,” he said.
Yusfarizal contended that the High Court’s finding was consistent with Sanusi’s own submissions, in which the menteri besar argued that political success was not a measure of reputational harm in a defamation action.
"The High Court judge expressly and unreservedly accepted that submission. The appellant’s submission on appeal, if accepted, would mean that no successful politician could ever recover for defamation, which is not and has never been the law.
"I respectfully submit that the appeal ought to be dismissed with costs, and the High Court's decision, including the awards of damages and the ancillary relief granted, ought to be affirmed in its entirety,” he said.
On Aug 3, 2023, Sanusi filed a lawsuit against Saifuddin over statements the latter allegedly made on July 14 and 15 that year.
He claimed that at a press conference on July 14, Saifuddin alleged in substance that the plaintiff had used funds allocated under Marris, statutorily earmarked for road maintenance, for development purposes.
Sanusi, who is the Jeneri MP, said Saifuddin also made a statement at an election rally at Padang Awam in Guar Chempedak, Yan, on July 15, 2023, alleging that Sanusi had stolen rare earth elements.