GuySuCo Chief Executive Officer Dr. Paul Cheong is seeking more than $10 million in damages from Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed over allegations made in a Facebook video.
Cheong filed a Statement of Claim in the High Court on August 17, alleging that Mohamed’s August 11 publication on the Facebook page Team Mohamed’s was false, malicious and defamatory.
The suit also seeks an injunction preventing Mohamed from repeating the alleged defamatory statements, an order for the immediate removal of the publication and legal costs.
The dispute centres on comments made by Mohamed while criticising the proposed $121 billion Versailles-to-Parika four-lane highway project.
In the video, Mohamed discussed several companies which he alleged were connected to persons close to the government. He identified L’Heureuse Construction Services as being owned by Cheong and said the company had submitted a bid of more than $6.8 billion for a portion of the highway project.
Mohamed also questioned Cheong’s ability to properly perform his duties as GuySuCo CEO while allegedly pursuing government construction contracts.
However, Cheong’s lawsuit expressly denies those claims.
According to the Statement of Claim, Cheong is not the owner of L’Heureuse Construction Services or L’Heureuse Construction Services Inc. and has neither submitted a bid for government road contracts nor been awarded a government road contract.
Cheong also says the statements portrayed him as having incompetently constructed the Schoonord Road and as being unfit to function in his professional capacity.
The court document states that the video had attracted more than 1,300 comments and approximately 7,800 likes as of 6 a.m. on August 14, and continued to be viewed, shared and discussed.
The claimant is asking the High Court for damages exceeding $10 million, an injunction against further publication of the same or similar allegations, removal of the disputed content from Team Mohamed’s and any other social media platforms, costs and any other relief the court considers appropriate.
The proceedings were filed by Attorney-at-Law Rajendra R. Jaigobin.
Mohamed, who is named as the defendant, has 42 days after being served with the Statement of Claim to file a defence under the Civil Procedure Rules, according to the court document.
Discussion