Ranau woman files suit over Covid
Published on: Thursday, June 12, 2025
Published on: Thu, Jun 12, 2025 Text Size: Khairy in his former capacity as Health Minister, a post he held from August 2021 to November 2022, as defendants in the suit. Kota Kinabalu: A businesswoman from Ranau has filed a civil suit against the Government and Khairy Jamaluddin, alleging she was wrongfully penalised for being unvaccinated during the Covid-19 pandemic. Naomi @ Neomi Francis filed the suit at the Sessions Court in Kota Kinabalu on Wednesday.
Advertisement This is believed to be the first known civil suit in Sabah relating to Covid-19 enforcement, raising questions over administrative overreach and alleged infringement of personal rights. The 59-year-old named the Ranau District Council, the Health Ministry and Khairy in his former capacity as Health Minister, a post he held from August 2021 to November 2022, as defendants in the suit. Francis, who operates a stall at the Ranau Central Market, claims she suffered financial losses, reputational harm and psychological trauma after being issued a compound notice on Dec 20, 2021. She said the compound notice was issued on grounds that she had continued to operate her business without receiving a Covid-19 vaccination. In her statement of claim, Francis said she felt compelled to receive the vaccine simply to keep her business afloat. 'I was pressured to obtain vaccination solely for the purpose of continuing my business operations,' she said, adding the ordeal caused her 'significant mental exhaustion, emotional distress and trauma'. The compound notice was later cancelled by the Health Ministry on Feb 17, 2023. In an official letter, the Ministry's chief enforcement officer acknowledged a technical error in the enforcement action and returned the case to the Sabah State Health Department for review. The Ranau District Council subsequently retracted the compound notice in a letter dated March 8, 2023. However, Francis said the damage had already been done. Her stall remained closed from September 2021 until March 2023. 'During this time, I lost income, loyal customers and the public's trust in my business,' she said in the court filing. She is now seeking specific damages for 18 months of lost earnings, along with general and exemplary damages, interest and legal costs. Francis is represented by Messrs Priskila Akwila Advocates. The court has fixed the hearing for July 14, 2025. Khairy is now a media personality and co-host of the Keluar Sekejap podcast. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Express
3 hours ago
- Daily Express
New building planned for Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Published on: Friday, June 13, 2025 Published on: Fri, Jun 13, 2025 By: Sherell Jeffrey Text Size: Masidi, Dr Kahar, Li Ling, Dr William and Dexter looking at photos on display at the history gallery. Kota Kinabalu: Plans are in the pipeline for a new clinical building at QEH to address the growing healthcare demands in the State. 'This new clinical building will increase service capacity and add more beds to reduce congestion and expedite patient treatment access,' said State Health Director Dr Maria Suleiman. Advertisement She was represented by Deputy (Medicine) Datuk Dr Abd Kahar Abd Asis. The expansion is in response to frequent feedback about lengthy waiting times in the emergency department due to insufficient bed capacity. 'Sometimes patients seeking help have to wait long in emergency because of inadequate beds. We truly want to help but are constrained by the insufficient number of beds,' she said. The new building project, which has received preliminary approval from the Ministry of Health, is currently in the early planning phase. She praised Queen Elizabeth Hospital's achievements, noting its status as one of the excellent hospitals nationally when compared to several hospitals in the region. 'This is not only a source of national pride but also pride for us in Sabah,' she said. The hospital, which serves as the State's main referral centre with national standards, continues to face daily challenges despite its staff's dedication. 'The commitment shown by the staff brings many blessings, and today we receive contributions,' she said. Dr Maria expressed gratitude to the Commonwealth Association of Leadership Malaysia (CALM) for the signboard-cum- historical gallery initiative and to the State Ministry of Finance for their financial support in realising this. Acknowledging the importance of public-private partnerships, Dr Maria called for more organisations to step forward through corporate social responsibility initiatives. 'The success of our healthcare system does not depend solely on government strength but also on inclusive cooperation networks with the private sector, non-governmental organisations and the community. 'Every contribution given is not just filling needs but sowing hope and building meaning. Our doors are always open and our hands are always ready to welcome acts of kindness at any time from anyone,' she said. Meanwhile, Dr Kahar pointed to the need for strong political will and leadership to ensure the project, already included in the Malaysia Plan (RMK) list, moves forward smoothly. He said the expansion plans will be coupled with a multi-storey car parking project to resolve the hospital's chronic parking shortage. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
New Straits Times
12 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Dzulkefly: Govt may exempt Sabah, Sarawak doctors from rural allowance freeze
KOTA KINABALU: The Health Ministry will consider exempting medical doctors in Sabah and Sarawak from the freeze on rural allowances. Its minister, Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, said the issue would be raised at the upcoming cabinet meeting. The freeze was implemented following the tabling of Budget 2025 as part of the Finance Ministry's fiscal consolidation strategy. "This issue was raised during my visit here, and we have taken it very seriously. "We will table the matter at the Cabinet meeting and examine it thoroughly," he said during the handover of 100 haemodialysis machines from the Sabah government to the Health Ministry at Queen Elizabeth Hospital II today. He was responding to concerns raised by Sabah Community Development and People's Wellbeing Minister Datuk James Ratib yesterday. James had warned that the freeze could discourage contract doctors from renewing their service in remote parts of Sabah, especially given the lack of basic infrastructure in rural areas compared to urban centres. There are currently about 4,000 government doctors serving in the state. Earlier, Dr Dzulkefly said the haemodialysis machines were urgently needed to boost treatment capacity in public health facilities across Sabah. The number of end-stage renal failure patients seeking treatment at government facilities in the state has increased from 1,831 in 2020 to 2,133 in 2024. At present, Sabah has 474 haemodialysis machines; of these, only 435 are operational, while 39 are damaged. The Sabah government has allocated RM8.5 million, including RM4.5 million for the procurement of the machines. Patients will be exempted from the RM13 fee for using the machines, while those undergoing home-based treatment via the Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis (CAPD) method will receive a RM100 subsidy from the state government.
The Star
15 hours ago
- The Star
Ukraine and Russia exchange wounded, ill prisoners of war
A Ukrainian prisoner of war (POWs) is seen after a swap, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, at an unknown location in Ukraine, in this handout picture released June 12, 2025. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy Via Telegram/Handout via REUTERS KYIV (Reuters) -Ukraine and Russia exchanged another group of ill and severely wounded servicemen on Thursday, officials from both countries said. All of the Ukrainian troops need treatment, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a message on the Telegram messaging app that did not go into details on the numbers involved. Kyiv and Moscow agreed to a large exchange of POWs and the remains of thousands of dead soldiers during talks in Istanbul earlier this month. Since then, Russia and Ukraine have swapped dozens of prisoners of war, focusing on under-25s and the severely wounded and sick. There are hopes they could build into some of the biggest exchanges in the war that was triggered by Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Russia's defence ministry said a group of Russian troops had returned from Ukraine and crossed into neighbouring Belarus, in accordance with the agreements made on June 2. "They are being provided with the necessary psychological and medical assistance," the ministry said on Telegram. On Wednesday, Ukraine said it had brought home the bodies of 1,212 bodies of troops killed in the war with Russia. Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky said Ukraine had returned the bodies of 27 Russian soldiers. (Reporting by Olena Harmash, Aleksandar Vasovic and Alexander Marrow; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Andrew Heavens)
