He said the party has been thriving on public donations for a long time and will continue to do so.

“Of course, DAP does not have RM200 million (in its savings). But we don’t need the RM200 million,” Loke said in his speech at the Penang DAP convention here, where the party also celebrated its 57th anniversary.

“We don’t need cash from tycoons and mega corporations for we have enough money donated by the ordinary rakyat. This is from the hard work by party members in organising fundraising dinners among others.”

Loke said the party had always received donations from its supporters to the point where funds that are in excess of its needs are placed as fixed deposits in banks.

His comments come in the wake of the revelation made by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim yesterday at the PKR Congress that more than RM200 million had been channelled to a political party after it had awarded a project to a contractor when it was in power.

Anwar, who is also PKR president, said he had found out that the party, which he declined to identify, had received other kickbacks too.

Loke also called on the state chapter to help its Pakatan Harapan (PH) allies PKR and Amanah to win seats in the upcoming Penang state elections with its strong and effective election machinery.

“This strong machinery has been delivering victories in the state for the last 15 years.”

Meanwhile, DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng slammed extremists who were peddling lies and sowing racial hatred with the intention of toppling the unity government.

While he did not name them, he is believed to have been alluding to Perikatan Nasional, whose leaders have been criticised for making comments on toppling the government, as well as for their rhetoric during the 15th general election.

“By defeating them in the (upcoming) state elections in Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and even in other states (Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu), we can stop them from using dirty tactics to bring down this government,” he said in his speech.