A Malaysian Political Court Case

Following last November's Pengkalan Kota by-election in Penang, the defeated opposition party (DAP) candidate filed a petition to the court, claiming that Malaysian Finance Minister Tunku Razaleigh Hamzah, during his campaigning tour to Pengkalan Kota, told a crowd of more than 1500 people in the constituency: "If the National Front (ie the ruling party) wins, I will personally give more money for development." According to the DAP candidate, this was an inducement that constituted bribery. The basis of this statement was a report in the leading national newspaper, the New Straits Times, which quoted Razaleigh as making the remark. Razaleigh denied the claim but did not seek any correction from the paper. He however explained that what he actually told the crowd was that "If we (the NF) win, we shall make an allocation to bring more development for the benefit of the people of the area." Tunku Razaleigh was later acquitted of the charge because "his committing a corrupt practice is not proven", as the judge put it. The case foundered due to firstly, the reporter's admission that he might nave misheard Razaleigh's words and, secondly, the failure to produce any witness from the meeting.