Anwar Ibrahim’s Madani government should clarify matters instead of turning into a Badawi-like government, he told reporters at the PAS general assembly.

Sanusi accused the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission and the police of requesting that news portals and blogs remove reports and content critical of Anwar’s government, Utusan Malaysia reported.

He said MCMC had demanded that TV Pertiwi remove six videos and in June had blocked MalaysiaNow for 48 hours. In July, UtusanTV was also blocked, as well as the Malaysia Today blog, he alleged.

“They were blocked because they published news critical of Anwar,” he was quoted as saying.

“I hear many complaints by TikTok, Facebook and Twitter users that their accounts have been suspended and their content erased,” he said.

“This government is really afraid.”

Sanusi, who is also the Kedah menteri besar, alleged that MCMC had directed a mobile phone company to block the account of an activist and five family members.

He said the activist had since filed an application for a judicial review of the government’s actions.

Sanusi said the government’s action had led to an increasing erosion of public confidence towards the MCMC and police.

“The government should clear the air over matters that are vague instead of turning it into a Badawi-like government,” he said in reference to Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who was prime minister from 2003 to 2009.