JOHOR BAHRU: Any form of government aid given during the by-election campaign for the Pulai parliamentary seat and the Simpang Jeram state seat cannot have the symbol of any political parties, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar, who is also Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman, said the matter had been discussed with Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi.

"There is an issue about the distribution of government aid to the people, party symbols cannot be used for this. This was practised by Perikatan Nasional (PN) before and I believe there are also one or two cases in the Unity Government.

"Symbols of political parties cannot be used because all government aid is from the government," he said after attending the "Kenduri Rakyat" and handing-over of 1,000 Rahmah baskets at Dataran Taman Dahlia here today.

The Election Commission (EC) has set tomorrow as nomination day for the two by-elections, while early voting is on Sept 5 and Sept 9 is polling day.

The by-elections were called following the death of their incumbents, Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub last July 23. Salahuddin was the Pulai Member of Parliament as well as the Simpang Jeram assemblyman.

Anwar said during the campaigning period, all party machinery and leaders should also abide by and respect all the rules set by the EC to ensure the smooth running of the election process.

Earlier in his speech at the event, Anwar said the government, in not wanting the people to be burdened with the increasing cost of living, would ensure everything that is within its control continues to be carried out, including the provision of subsidies for essential goods.

This also included expanding and continuing the Jualan Rahmah initiative, which is the legacy of the late Salahuddin, which proved to be able to help the less affordable as they can get essential items at a lower price.

However, he said, there are things that are beyond the government's control.

"An example is when the Indian government announced to increase the export tax for onions by 40 per cent, which is expected to have an impact on the price of onions in this country," he added.

As such, he said, for the long term, the government is focusing on strengthening the agricultural sector to reduce the country's dependence on food imports which reach tens of billions of ringgit every year.

Besides Onn Hafiz, also present at the event were the Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Fuziah Salleh, Amanah vice-president Senator Datuk Seri Mujahid Yusof Rawa, and the PH candidate named by Amanah to contest the Pulai parliamentary seat, Suhaizan Kaiat.

Before attending the feast, Anwar went to perform the Friday prayer at the Masjid Jamek Ar-Rahman in Taman Dahlia, here, and spent some time meeting the congregation after that.

-- BERNAMA