INTERVIEW | Budget 2019, Pakatan Harapan's first federal budget, will be one of sacrifice, says Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad. 

"This budget is of sacrifice, everyone will have to sacrifice. 

"The budget has to be careful. We can't spend more than our earnings. 

"We can't entertain all sorts of requests. We have to accept that we must sacrifice," Mahathir told Malaysiakini and Sinar Harian in a joint interview on Thursday. 

Upon taking office, the Harapan government announced that the debts and liabilities stood at over RM1 trillion.

Many of its policies since have been aimed at curbing any additional bloat and saving the government money. 

Mahathir said that while Budget 2019 will entail sacrifices, it will not be as austere as those of countries that have seen economic collapse, such as Greece. 

However, he stressed that if sacrifices are not made the country cannot be cured.

The Harapan government is expected to table Budget 2019 in Parliament on Nov 2.

This interview was jointly conducted by Zikri Kamarulzaman, Haris Mohd, Lu Wei Hoong, Norman Goh, and Sinar Harian.

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