IPOH, Jan 22 — Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad has clarified that the Special Financial Assistance (BKK) announced under the Perak Budget 2026 has been fully credited to the service centres of all 59 state assemblymen, including those in the Opposition.

Saarani dismissed claims that some centres — particularly Opposition-held ones — had informed members of the public they lacked funds because the state government had withheld allocations.

“I wish to inform that the funds were credited into the respective service centre accounts yesterday.

“This means that all 59 assemblymen, whether from the government or the Opposition, can check their service centre accounts, as RM20,000 has already been channelled to each centre,” he said.

He was speaking during a press conference after officiating the Perak Executive Talk and 2026 New Year Address at Hotel Casuarina Meru here.

Saarani said the clarification was necessary to ensure the public understands that every elected representative has received the allocation as announced.

“During the tabling of the 2026 Budget, the state government announced a two-month BKK payment for Perak civil servants, which was disbursed together with their December salaries.

“In addition, I also announced that the BKK would not be given to elected representatives personally but instead channelled to their respective service centres.

“Each service centre receives a monthly management allowance of RM10,000, and therefore a two-month payment amounting to RM20,000 was approved.

“However, unlike the civil servants who received the assistance in December, the payment to service centres was made this year,” he explained.

He said all state service centres have long been receiving monthly allocations, previously set at RM5,000 before being increased to RM10,000 last year.

“From the RM10,000 monthly allocation, RM7,000 must be used strictly for management and administrative purposes, including office rental, staff salaries and utility bills such as telephone and water.

“The remaining RM3,000 may be used for other purposes, including assisting residents facing hardship, carrying out minor home repairs such as fixing damaged roofs, or providing aid to schools,” he said.

“With the RM20,000 that has been credited, and with RM3,000 available each month, the total over 12 months reaches RM36,000, in addition to the RM20,000, which can be used by all assemblymen to help the people,” he added.

He said the clarification was necessary to prevent misunderstandings and dispel any perception that the state government is unfair to certain constituencies.

On calls by Opposition leaders for Perak to adopt the “State Government 4” (SG4) model in allocating constituency funds, Saarani said Perak’s existing approach is more equitable.

He said the state government had studied the practices of other states, including Perlis and Kedah — which allocate RM5,000 and RM2,000 per month respectively — before deciding on its model.

“After discussions, the Opposition assemblymen themselves agreed that Perak should follow its own model. Under the Perak model, we provide RM10,000 per month to service centres and also allocate BKK.

“Therefore, the issue of unequal allocation should not arise, as the state government ensures that assistance reaches the people in all constituencies, with the only difference being the channel or mechanism used to deliver the aid,” he said.

On claims that Opposition constituencies did not receive school assistance allocations, Saarani said this was due to a misunderstanding.

“The funds are not given to elected representatives; they are given directly to the people.

“For Opposition constituencies, the assistance is managed by the menteri besar’s special officers, with the allocation amount being the same — RM150 per recipient for 160 recipients, totalling RM24,000.

“Those who did not receive the funds were the assemblymen themselves, but their constituents did receive the assistance.

“The same applies to my own constituency, which I manage directly due to its size,” he said, adding that it is therefore incorrect to say the government did not provide any assistance.