KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has lamented being ridiculed for forgoing his salary as both Prime Minister and Finance Minister.
"When I say I do not take a salary, I get ridiculed," he said during a town hall session marking the two-year anniversary of the Madani government.
Anwar explained that he only kept his allowance as a member of parliament.
"Azizah (Bandar Tun Razak Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail) also receives a parliamentary allowance, and we combine," he said.
"It's okay, I am not poor," he added, to laughter from the crowd.
He expressed disappointment that his critics would trivialise such matters.
In his inaugural press conference following his appointment as Prime Minister in 2022, Anwar announced that he would not take a salary until the country's economy recovered.
Anwar also said that some critics were intent on attacking the government without offering constructive input, despite ministers having taken a 20 per cent pay cut and civil servant salaries being increased.