In a unanimous decision, Justice Azizah Nawawi, who chaired a three-member panel hearing the appeal, said Lim was not entitled to rely on the defence of justification, fair comment or even qualified privilege, reported The Edge.

The panel, which included Justices Mariana Yahya and Azimah Omar, also ordered Lim to pay costs of RM70,000.

Azeez was appealing a ruling handed down by the Penang High Court on Dec 11, 2020, which had dismissed his suit against Lim, the former Penang chief minister, over comments made regarding the Penang undersea tunnel project.

Azeez filed the suit in March 2018 claiming that Lim had issued defamatory statements during a press conference at the Penang chief minister’s office on Feb 28, 2018, and during a Chinese New Year open house event hosted by the Penang Development Corporation on the same day.

On both occasions, Lim had linked Azeez to a payment of RM3 million as consultation fees from the developer of the undersea tunnel project.