Anwar took aim at Syed Mokhtar because he's Malay, says Kedah MB

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim only dared to reprimand Syed Mokhtar Albukhary among other rich corporate figures in Malaysia as he is Malay and easily bullied, Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said last night. 

Speaking at a Perikatan Nasional (PN) campaign event in Kedah, the state PN chairman questioned Anwar's move not to "look" for other rich individuals in the country given that Syed Mokhtar is only in the top 20 list. 

"He said Syed Mokhtar was controlling rice and needed to return RM10 million and RM50 million to farmers next year. 

"Why Syed Mokhtar?" he added. "Because he is Malay. Why? Are there no other rich people in Malaysia?"

Anwar had said after chairing his first Cabinet meeting in Putrajaya that Syed Mokhtar had agreed to allocated RM10 million for poor farmers after being reprimanded. 

He also said that his government would not allow the confiscation of property by political figures against the rice farmers. 

Meanwhile, Sanusi urged Digital Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil to focus on his responsibilities as a Cabinet member and not to waste time monitoring his TikTok account. 

He said Fahmi's call for the authorities to investigate his speech at a recent PN campaign event for the Padang Serai polls was a waste of time as the video of the speech uploaded on social media had been misinterpreted. 

Sanusi said the speech was actually advising voters in Padang Serai against having a "calculative" attitude when voting on election day on Dec 7. 

"He found me advising people to go back to vote in Padang Serai. 

"I said not to take into account the cost of petrol. Go back and vote first, we want Pakatan Harapan to lose. Surely advising them is not wrong," he added. 

He said as the digital communications minister, Fahmi should focus on issues surrounding internet coverage, not the social media accounts of PN leaders. 

"It's a big responsibility being a minister," he said. "I read in the news that the minister has called for an investigation against me. 

"Padang Serai hasn't even voted yet. Voting day is only on Dec 7. What's all the fuss about?"