Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has denied he had been merely "acting" frugal by donning a pair of RM12 Bata sandals and by shopping at a budget retail outlet.

Speaking to the Malay Mail, the 92-year-old premier said he was not trying to shake off the label of excess, especially when certain quarters have questioned his wealth.

“It's not a case of portraying (that I'm frugal); I'm naturally like that,” he said in an interview with the English daily.

“People don’t know the kind of lifestyle I live. I'm very frugal. I don’t waste money. I don’t buy things I don’t need.

“I’m very careful about how I spend my money,” Mahathir said, adding that he does not borrow money and as such, has no debts.

Even the loan he took to build his home had been promptly paid off, he stressed.

“If I borrow, I feel burdened that I have to repay it. I don’t want that burden.”

The Pakatan Harapan chairperson further explained that he does not dabble in shares, explaining that the last lot of shares purchased was 200 shares for the now-defunct Malayan Tobacco company, back in the 70s when he became a minister.

After all, he reminded that it would be wrong to buy shares now as he would have insider knowledge.

He added that he only invested in pilgrims’ fund Tabung Haji and in Permodalan Nasional Bhd. 

Could have bought Langkawi land 

Mahathir also pointed out that had he wished, he could have bought land in Langkawi which he had declared as a duty-free island in 1987, but that he had chosen not to.

"Those days, one relung, which is about less than half an acre, would cost only RM200,” he was quoted saying.

A relung is an archaic measurement unit which equals to roughly 0.7 acres.

“I could have bought and declared Langkawi tax-free, and land price as you know, one acre would fetch more than RM5 million now.”

The wealth of Mahathir and that of his family members had come under the spotlight after he left Umno to join the opposition movement, and began questioning then prime minister Najib Abdul Razak over allegations of misappropriated funds from the scandal-ridden 1MDB.

Last month, Malay group Jaringan Melayu Malaysia had urged the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to probe Mahathir for alleged abuse of power.

His entrepreneurial sons Mokhzani (picture) and Mirzan were well-known for their supposed wealth.

To this, Mahathir explained that while he built his wealth on his own via his habit of saving, his children expanded their wealth through their own initiatives.

“I don’t think about enriching myself because I find that I am already rich,” he said.

Previously, he said during his previous 22-year tenure as prime minister, the government had provided him with many facilities, from housing to transport, thus he need not fork out a single sen.

“So the money I have ever since I became minister of education, I saved,” he said, adding his RM8,000 monthly wages back then had increased to RM20,000 now.

“That’s the money I have now, which I invest rather foolishly in many things. I have not made a single sen,” he said.

The Langkawi parliamentarian is believed to be referring to the Japanese-inspired bakery The Loaf, which he invested in and which had reportedly closed all its 12 outlets in Malaysia last month after 12 years in operation.