Lamenting that the political discourse in the country left “much to be desired”, Rahman, who is in charge of the Economic Planning Unit (EPU), wished that politics revolved around policies.

“Many talk about politics but it is about spinning half-baked stories.

“Political discourse will affect investments. Discourse needs to be about things that matter.

“We want to know what the opposition policies are on economy, education and foreign policy.

“We need to know their stand on issues such as Bumiputera rights and subsidies,” he told reporters when closing the 19th Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute (Asli) Malaysia Strategic Outlook Conference.

Rahman also said such politicking would affect investments, including rumours that the federal government had no money.

The national budget, he argued, had increased but, unfortunately, the federal government had to prioritise certain projects.

He said just because a project wasn’t given an allocation didn’t mean the government did not have the funds. Such accusations, he said, were unfair.

Rahman also hoped the opposition could come up with policies to match the BN’s so that the two sides could discuss the matter. We can discuss.

“People say we need a world-class government. To do this, we also need a first-class opposition. Otherwise, it will not work.”