SAPP sues DAP portal over alleged false images of Lahad Datu intrusion

The Star

17-07-2025

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) is suing DAP's portal Roketkini for allegedly uploading fake images of the 2013 incursion in Lahad Datu.
The suit was filed by SAPP president and former chief minister Datuk Seri Yong Teck Lee, historian Stephan Gaimin and activist Asraf Amir on July 10.
They are seeking a public apology from DAP and Roketkini over the allegedly fake picture and information, which have been publicly accessible since 2013, and a promise not to upload any fake or misleading content.
Yong said that after the suit was filed, they found that the portal had taken down the said material without any apology, correction, or explanation.
'The materials uploaded were fake and misled public understanding about the Lahad Datu intrusion in 2013,' Yong said when contacted on Thursday (July 17).
He said he came across the photos and article dated Feb 24, 2013, which were obtained from a separate conflict in the Southern Philippines but used as though it was of the Lahad Datu incident.
He said the images induced unnecessary fear among the people and caused confusion during the crisis.
Yong said he is unsure if the article and photos were taken down at the instruction of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) or voluntarily by DAP, and that these details would only come out during litigation.
Recalling the International Arbitration Colloquium on the Sulu claim on Sabah, at the Sabah International Convention Centre on July 4, 2023, he said he was shocked to see the photos and articles which were shown by a senior lawyer from Kuala Lumpur.
'The photos... during the presentation (made it seem as if) they were taken during the actual intrusion in Sabah,' he said.
Later, when reading a Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) publication on this issue, Yong also saw the same picture reprinted in an academic context.
He said such usage of the Roketkini article had turned it into part of the narrative, spreading the damage of the allegedly false information and prompting the need for legal action.
'There may be (others who) mistakenly depended on this DAP propaganda portal, and DAP is the largest government party in Parliament,' he said, adding that merely taking down the content did not excuse the damage that has been done.