THE poor must not rely on the government if they want to break out of poverty, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today.

Instead, he said the poor must work hard and look for other ways to supplement their income.

“We (government) cannot address poverty by giving the poor money. This will not help them to get out of poverty. If we continue to give them money, they will be in poverty forever.

“The way forward for them is to accept the government’s idea and proposal. The government can help by providing capital to start businesses and hold training courses.

“But they must work hard to lift their living standards. Not by getting BR1M or free money,” he said, referring to government aid.

Dr Mahathir said this in Putrajaya during his department’s monthly assembly today.

However, he acknowledged the wealth gap between the rich and the poor in Malaysia.

He said the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 is an effort by the Pakatan Harapan government to reduce the gap.

“We cannot become a developed country if there is a gap between the rich and the poor. More so we are a multi-ethnic country.

“If one particular race is far ahead of the other, problems will arise.”

“That is why we introduced the Share Prosperity Vision policy so we can move forward together.”

Before ending his speech, Dr Mahathir urged civil servants to play a role in advising the needy that they must not depend fully on the government.

“I hope everyone here can advise the poor on ways to improve themselves so we can become a developed country like Japan, South Korea and China.

“If you want to succeed, you must work for it. Nothing comes free in this world.” – December 2, 2019.