Putrajaya is less well off after it allocated over RM600 billion for Budget 2021 and several stimulus packages to help Malaysians affected by Covid-19, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said.
"So much money has been spent last year and this year. Why? For Covid-19. This included various stimulus packages totalling RM340 billion and RM322 billion allocation for the national budget.
"I went to school, but I am not good at calculation... how much it adds up... it's more than RM600 billion - that's a big sum of money.
"What I am trying to say here is, we don't have much money left," he told the Sikh community at a Vaisakhi celebration in Petaling Jaya this afternoon.
"We don't have as much (money) as before, because the most important thing for us is to ensure our livelihood; we should be able to manage ourselves better," Muhyiddin said.
The government has no choice as this is the country for all, he stressed.
Despite the financial condition, Muhyiddin pledged to allocate RM3 million for all 120 gurdwaras (Sikh temples) in the country, a slight increase from RM2.18 million in 2020.
The prime minister also announced another RM1 million allocation for the Malaysian Gurdwaras Council to build its proposed Sikh centre.
In March, Muhyiddin announced a new economic stimulus package dubbed the Strategic Programme to Empower the People and Economy (Pemerkasa) worth RM20 billion.
Before this, Putrajaya had announced various stimulus packages, namely Prihatin worth RM250 billion, Prihatin SMEs (RM10 billion), Penjana (RM35 billion), Kita Prihatin (RM10 billion) and Permai (RM15 billion).
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin expressed his hope that Malaysians could learn about the various multiracial and multi-religious festivals that are celebrated in the country.
"I want to stress that the Perikatan Nasional policy is strongly founded on the principle of respect, inclusivity and justice," he said.
"Thus, it is important for us to get to know one another and understand one another's cultural and historical uniqueness," he said.
The prime minister added that any attitude and behaviour that could cause discomfort and suspicion among the people should be set aside. - Mkini
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