Zaid Ibrahim said Putrajaya could use its resources and social media platforms to communicate its own information, or “even propaganda”.

“Why are the leaders so paranoid about criticism?” he added in a post on X.

Zaid was responding to reports of a lawyer being probed for sedition after calling Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim a “scammer” over allegedly unfulfilled promises.

Rafique Rashid Ali had made the speech during an anti-government rally in June.

Zaid said it was neither fair nor justified to call Anwar a scammer as the prime minister had taken “some positive actions to revive industries, such as attracting investors to the country to create a hub for high-end semiconductors”.

He said Anwar had also helped many infrastructure projects in states under PAS rule.

However, he said the investigation into Rafique was uncalled for, describing it as “overkill”.

He said Anwar himself had said that the Sedition Act would only be used to curb issues related to the 3Rs of race, religion and royalty.

“I urge the prime minister to tell the police to let the lawyer off and continue talking unimpeded,” he said.

“It’s good for Anwar’s own image.”