00:00Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad claims that the attempt by UMNO President
00:06Ahmad Zayed Hamadi to begin contempt proceedings against him was made with malicious intention
00:11to delay an ongoing defamation trial.
00:15Mahathir said his media interview after a court proceeding on December 5th was merely
00:19a repeat of what he had testified in the libel suit brought against Zahid in 2022.
00:24He argued that his statements did not show disrespect to the court or disrupt justice,
00:29and since the trial was not a jury trial, the sub judice rule did not apply.
00:34On January 7th, Judicial Commissioner Gant Tucheng granted Zahid leave to initiate contempt
00:39proceedings, but Mahathir dismissed Zahid's claim that his December 5th remarks posed
00:43a real and substantial danger of prejudice as baseless and speculative.
00:48Mahathir accused Zahid of abusing the court process to suppress his constitutional right
00:52to free speech and prevent him from acting as a check and balance on the government.
00:57The defamation case originates from a 2017 remark by Zahid at an UMNO meeting where
01:01he allegedly referred to Mahathir using the name Qutti, implying he was not born Malay
01:05or Muslim.
01:06Mahathir contends that Zahid's remark falsely suggested he used the name Mahathir Mohamad
01:11for political and personal gain, while Zahid claims the name was based on an old identity
01:16card record.
01:17Danish Raja Reza, FMT News.
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