Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim called on past leaders and billionaires in the country to “give half [their] wealth” to the Malay people if they were truly committed to helping the community, The Star reported.
Speaking at a Hari Raya open house event held at Universiti Teknologi Mara in Penang on May 6, Anwar lambasted both tycoons and past leaders for enriching their wealth while in power.
“I would like to tell these Tuns and Tan Sris who are multi-billionaires – you have taken much of the country's wealth, (now) give half of your wealth to the Malays.”
He name-dropped former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and ex-Financial Minister Daim Zainuddin as those who benefited while in power, according to the Malay Mail.
“Tun Daim or Tun Mahathir, I don’t care. No matter how much wealth you own, RM10 billion (S$1.91 billion) or RM15 billion (S$2.87 billion), if you want to say long live the Malays and fight for their rights, whatever it is you hoarded, return it back to the Malay people.”
Besides asserting that certain politicians had used their Malay rights to gain political advantage, Anwar also said that despite them reiterating that they wanted to help the Malay community, they ended up amassing wealth for themselves and their family.
Anwar vs Mahathir
Anwar’s speech came shortly after Mahathir filed a RM150 million (S$44.7 million) defamation suit against the former on May 5.
https://mothership.sg/2023/05/anwar-tells-leaders-share-wealth/
