HARDCORE poverty in the country needs to be eradicated this year, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said.

He said government machinery, especially the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development (KKDW) and its agencies, must work towards ending it.

“This year, we must eradicate and put an end to hardcore poverty including in Negri Sembilan,” he said when launching the Sentuhan Kasih Desa programme in Nilai today.

Also present were Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who is also Rural and Regional Development Minister, Negri Sembilan Menteri Besar Aminuddin Harun and Defence Minister Mohamad Hasan.

The Prime Minister said KKDW is a strategic ministry that can help the people.

He said the ministry should not only focus on big and mega projects, but should also try to help the people get out of poverty.

“We cannot just talk about the high speed railway, the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project, semi-detached buildings, Putrajaya and so on. The poor don’t have enough to buy milk for their children, they don’t have enough to buy school clothes, so we have to prioritise that.

“We want the people to see for themselves what the government is doing, including the Negri Sembilan government, and not to use the political space to attack others,” he said.

He also reiterated the call for school toilets nationwide to be repaired this year.

“The salaries of ministers and special ambassadors are all high, yet school toilets cannot be repaired. That’s why we must settle this issue this year for our children,” he said. – Bernama, June 24, 2023.