Countersuing PM Lee Over FB Sharing Incident
Mr Leong, a financial adviser and blogger, fell into the spotlight earlier this month (6 Dec) when Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong filed a lawsuit against him for sharing a controversial article.
Mr Leong thought the lawsuit was unreasonable and saw no basis for it. Earlier today (26 Dec), he announced on Facebook that he will be countersuing PM Lee.
Mr Leong wrote that he will be suing PM Lee for “abusing the process of the court in bringing the claim against me”. In simpler terms, he is countersuing because he believes that PM Lee had sued him without good reason.
The article Mr Leong shared
The article Mr Leong shared had alleged that PM Lee made “secret deals” with indicted Malaysian ex-PM Najib Razak, allegedly accusing the leader of Singapore of having a hand in the 1MDB scandal.
Mr Leong explained on Facebook that he had merely shared the article — he never added any comments of his own, let alone anything incendiary.
After sharing the article, he was given a notice from the Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA) demanding for the post to be taken down within 6 hours. And he complied.
So it baffled him why the PM was suing him for defamation.
Countersuing with lawyer Lim Tean
The name Lim Tean may be familiar to some. In October this year, he announced the setting up of a new political party — People’s Voice.
Some may also know him as a lawyer with Carson Law Chambers.
Netizens react
Such a high-level lawsuit is sure to attract the attention of many netizens.
One netizen wondered if Mr Leong is going to be the first ever to sue PM Lee — an extremely tall order by any standard.
Another imagined that no judge would dare lay a verdict against PM Lee.
Yet another questioned why out of the many people who shared the article, only Mr Leong was getting sued.
Awaiting outcome
Mr Leong had only just filed the lawsuit, so it will probably take a while for any kind court action to get going.
It is unfortunate that both parties have had to resort to suing each other. Hopefully, the matter can be cleared up in court and the dispute settled amicably.
Featured image from Leong Sze Hian on Facebook and Facebook.
