Najib: You can turn down BR1M

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno president and prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak said people who complain about the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M) have the option of not accepting it.
Najib defended the financial assistance given by the government since 2012 as an initiative to help the poor in this country.
“BR1M has got nothing to do with ‘dedak’ (animal feed).
“It was a suggestion by Bank Negara, it was not my suggestion. But because I made the decision, (others claim) that it was as though I was buying votes. It’s not about buying votes, I want to help the rakyat who are not well-off.
“If you don’t want BR1M, don’t accept it, no problem,” Najib said during his winding-up speech at the 2016 Umno Annual General Assembly held at Putra World Trade Center here.
BR1M was first introduced in 2012, providing cash aid of RM500 to households with incomes of RM3,000 and below.
The amount increased each year and during the Budget 2017, Najib announced that households earning below RM3,000 a month would receive a cash payment of RM 1,200; households with monthly income of RM3,000 to RM4,000 would receive RM900; single persons earning below RM2,000 a month will receive RM450.
Najib also questioned how long Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), which is former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s brainchild, would last to allegedly topple Umno and Barisan Nasional.
“There are a lot of stories during Tun (Mahathir’s) era, and I know most of it.
"Now, don’t always write about Umno, because you are not in the party anymore.
“Go and organise your new party’s convention instead,” Najib added.