Sabah court dismisses Albert Tei’s defamation suit against SMM

A sessions court in Kota Kinabalu has dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed by businessman Albert Tei against Sabah Mineral Management Sdn Bhd (SMM), a state government agency overseeing the mining sector.

Judge Monica Linsua ruled on August 21 that Tei failed to prove the defamatory elements of his claim. Tei had sued the agency last August, alleging that SMM falsely linked him to a conspiracy to damage the company’s reputation and its CEO, as well as involving document tampering.

The court found that SMM’s statements, when viewed in their entirety, did not explicitly state that Tei was part of a political campaign. The judge noted a distinction between suggesting allegations might be politically motivated and stating the plaintiff was actively involved in a political campaign. The use of terms such as ‘could be’ and ‘may be’ indicated the company was expressing its belief regarding the circumstances.

As a result of the dismissal, the court ordered Tei to pay RM25,000 in costs to SMM.