Sin Chew editor denies property-for-media-support claims

(The Malaysian Insider) – The executive editor-in-chief of top-selling newspaper, Sin Chew Daily, filed a police report today to protect his reputation over claims he received property as a reward in return for his support of former minister, Tan Sri Ong Ka Ting, in a fractious MCA power-struggle over a decade ago.

Kuik Cheng Kang came under heavy fire on Facebook and blogs following widespread allegations that the houses were gifts from property tycoon Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng, as instructed by Ka Ting, for media support during a party election in 2001.

The newspaper man said he had two terrace homes in Puchong, Selangor but denied they were gifts.

Kuik said he bought one as far back as 1995 and asked, “How can it be that I got the house after the MCA fight?”

The senior editor of the country’s best-selling Chinese-language daily told reporters the allegations had first surfaced in a 2009 article during the MCA presidential tussle between Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat and Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, but added that they only made the rounds of the vernacular online community at the time.

He said he had initially ignored the allegations but decided to take action after they appeared in English recently.

An article titled “Sin Chew Publishing Group — The Whore Story” was published in Raja Petra Kamarudin’s controversial blog site, Malaysia Today.

Kuik said he lodged a complaint with the police because the article had defamed both him and the newspaper.

He said Lee, of IOI Group, has also denied the claims.

The IOI Group is Puchong’s biggest housing developer.