In rare use of controversial law, woman linked to Albert-Shamsul case charged with defaming businessman

A woman at the centre of last year's corruption scandal involving the Prime Minister's Office now faces two years in jail after she was charged with defaming former PKR leader turned multimillionaire businessman Farhash Wafa Salvador, in what is seen as a rare use of the controversial law that criminalises defamation.

Sofia Rini Buyong is charged under Section 500 of the Penal Code over a claim she made during a secretly taped conversation, in which she made certain allegations against Farhash. 

It comes two months after police reportedly questioned editors of news portals over a police report filed by Farhash.

Section 500 on criminal defamation is among laws that have been increasingly used against journalists, social media users and opposition leaders over the years, with criticism and claims uttered against ruling politicians being criminalised.

Critics have called for the abolition of the law, saying allegations of such a nature should be the subject of civil suits.

Today's charge, however, is among the rare instances in which the criminal defamation law has been invoked over claims in favour of a businessman. 

Sofia made her claim against Farhash during her meeting with prominent whistleblower Albert Tei, who recorded their conversation without her knowledge.

The 49-second clip was released on social media in April and is part of a recording from the same meeting between Tei and Sofia.

Since Nov 25 last year, several clips from the same meeting have been released, in which Sofia agreed with Tei's claim that he had showered Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's political secretary Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin with RM630,000 worth of gifts and cash.

Shamsul stepped down on the same day the clips were released.

In another instalment of the recording, she was heard saying that it was Anwar who instructed Shamsul to issue a support letter in 2024 recommending six contractors for a government hospital project.

She had also named Anwar and MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki as being complicit in a plan to secretly record more than a dozen Sabah ruling politicians admitting to receiving bribes in exchange for mineral licences.

Sofia has since been named as a key prosecution witness in the corruption trial involving Tei and Shamsul.