No bankruptcy order, Jamal says eligible to contest GE15

Barisan Nasional's (BN) Sungai Besar candidate Jamal Md Yunos has denied being issued a bankruptcy order that could disqualify him from contesting the 15th general election (GE15). 

In a statement today, Jamal dismissed Seputeh MP Teresa Kok’s claim that bankruptcy proceedings against him had commenced on Aug 30.

He said that case management would only be held on Nov 30, adding that his lawyer would be challenging the matter. 

He said he was currently in the appeal process regarding the High Court’s order for him to pay RM300,000 as compensation and RM50,000 in costs to Kok for defaming her.

The Sungai Besar Umno division chief said Kok’s insistence that the Election Commission (EC) object to his potential nomination as a GE15 candidate was premature, futile and wrongful as well as a desperate attempt to disqualify him as a candidate in the polls. 

"The facts are very clear, I have not been served with any bankruptcy order in line with the Insolvency Act 1967," he said. 

He said his eligibility as an election candidate therefore remained valid on nomination and polling day, until a bankruptcy order is issued and all appeals have been disposed of in accordance with the eligibility for nomination under Article 48 of the Federal Constitution. 

Kok was recently reported to have sent a letter to EC chairman Abdul Ghani Salleh on Jamal being named as BN’s candidate in Sungai Besar, claiming that he had yet to settle the terms of a judgment in a suit that she filed against him, which could lead to him being declared a bankrupt. 

In July, Kok was awarded RM300,000 in damages after winning a defamation suit against Jamal over the alleged misuse of Yayasan Warisan Anak Selangor funds.