Hanis Nordin, 34, pleaded guilty before sessions court judge Nor Hasniah Ab Razak to insulting the King in relation to the formation of the unity government.

He admitted to publishing the post on Facebook at about 3am on Dec 10 last year.

The post was read at the office of the federal commercial crime investigation department (CCID) on Dec 13.

The offence is punishable under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA), which upon conviction prescribes a maximum fine of RM50,000, a jail term of up to one year, or both, as well as a fine of RM1,000 for every day the offence is repeated after conviction.

Earlier, the accused, who was unrepresented, appealed to the judge to impose a lenient sentence, claiming that his posting had been misunderstood and that he did not mean to hurt anyone by it.

However, deputy public prosecutor Nurilya Ellyna Nor Azmal asked the court to impose a deterrent sentence.

“The accused has violated the right to freedom of speech under Article 10 of the Federal Constitution and failed to abide by the second and fifth principles of the Rukun Negara, which are loyalty to the King and country, and courtesy and morality,” she said.