Eusoff Chin CJ:

These three appeals were with consent of parties, set down for hearing together. At the outset counsel for appellant Ling Wah Press Sdn. Bhd. informed the court that he had received no instruction to proceed, and as no one from Ling Wah Press was present in court, the appeal was struck out with costs.

Encik Karpal Singh for 1st appellant (Encik M.G.G. Pillai) drew the attention of the court to a newspaper cutting where the Chief Justice when interviewed by the press two years earlier on 24 October 1996 had expressed his views that in libel cases persons of higher status would receive higher damages than those of lower status. He asked whether in view of that expression, the Chief Justice should disqualify himself from hearing these appeals. Both the Chief Judges on the panel, however, felt that each case must be dealt with on its merits and that this was no good reason to disqualify a judge from hearing a case. Otherwise, a judge who has expressed his opinion on an issue in an earlier decision would not be able to hear a case involving the same issue later on. Encik Karpal Singh withdrew his objection.

The Bar Council sent three of its members, Tuan Hj. S