Speaking in the Dewan Negara today, Anwar hit back at claims his administration has sidelined opposition states.

“I hope this kind of slander is stopped. Although there are constant accusations that the unity government oppresses states which do not support them, these claims are not true at all,” he said.

“The amount of allocations to the states, including Kelantan, Terengganu, Perlis and Kedah, is more than during the (previous governments) three-year rule.”

Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said Perlis received RM154 million this year, Terengganu RM400.1 million, Kelantan RM351.5 million, and Kedah RM512.1 million.

The four states received RM138 million, RM393.6 million, RM331 million and RM458.1 million, respectively, in 2022.

“This slander (about unfair treatment) is made by top leaders, including party chiefs, who say the finance minister oppresses states by not giving them allocations, or by delaying or reducing them,” he said.

“They dress up like scholars and use arguments from the Quran and hadith, but if they make statements like these, it’s my responsibility to respond … not to attack scholars but to clarify this.”

Previously, some Perikatan Nasional leaders criticised Budget 2023 for not providing opposition representatives with allocations.

Deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi dismissed PN’s criticism, reminding them that only Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration gave equal allocation to the opposition after the government and Pakatan Harapan signed a memorandum of understanding to ensure political stability.