PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has warned those responsible for managing public funds, including allocations channelled through TEKUN Nasional, Bank Rakyat and Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM), that they will face arrest and prosecution if they abuse their trust.
He said funds managed by the financing agencies must be safeguarded and administered responsibly, stressing that financial expertise must be accompanied by integrity and accountability.
"I am issuing a warning, and Steven Sim knows this. Every fund, whether TEKUN, Bank Rakyat or Amanah Ikhtiar, must be properly managed. This is money held in trust. If you breach that trust, you will be arrested and charged. Only then can we safeguard the country," he said.
Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, was speaking at the closing ceremony of the 2026 National Hawkers and Small Traders Day Carnival in Kajang today.
Anwar said curbing leakages, embezzlement and corruption had enabled the government to increase allocations for public assistance despite lower tax revenue and national income.
"Some people question this, sometimes on social media. They ask how allocations can increase when taxes and national revenue are lower. It is because there is no leakage, no embezzlement and no corruption. God willing, there will be blessings, and we can help the people. That is our purpose," he said.
He cited the RM18 billion cost of implementing civil servants' salary increases and the RM16 billion allocation for the Sumbangan Asas Rahmah (SARA) and Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) programmes.
However, he acknowledged that government assistance remained insufficient to meet all public needs and would have to be expanded gradually.
He also rejected claims that Kelantan had been neglected, saying political differences should not prevent the government from helping the people.
He said assistance to religious schools had been restored in 2022, followed by financial incentives for religious teachers in 2023 and repairs to several severely dilapidated buildings in 2024.
"When we took over in 2022, we felt this was not a fair system. We said we wanted to look after the people, so we reinstated the assistance in 2022," Buletin TV3 reported him saying.
He said support for religious schools, alongside assistance to families through STR and SARA, reflected the government's efforts to ease the burden on the people.
Also present were Entrepreneur and Cooperatives Development Minister Steven Sim, Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari, and Media Prima Berhad chairman and AIM Board of Trustees chairman Datuk Seri Dr Syed Hussian Syed Junid. - November 2, 2026
