Sungai Besar Umno chief Jamal Md Yunos claims his red shirts do not get any funding.

This was amid Jamal questioning the funding of his rivals, including pro-democracy group Bersih.

"The red shirts exist out of awareness and hatred towards what is being done by Bersih.

"We emerge to defend the honour of race and religion. We don't get any funds from anywhere," he said in an interview published in Sinar Harian today.

Jamal said the red-shirts do not need to be paid because they struggle for "religion, race and country".

"If there is any (payment), it is only in small amounts for food and drinks, so it is not a problem," he is quoted as saying.

Jamal also questioned grants received by Bersih and Malaysiakini from Open Society Foundations (OSF), which is linked to American billionaire George Soros.

He added that he, too, had suffered from Soros' currency speculation activities, which had in the past impacted Malaysia's economy as well.

'New age terrorists'

"As a businessman at that time, I felt the evil done by Soros.

"When we look at who is Soros and how Bersih and Malaysiakini are involved, it raises concerns," he said, describing the organisations as "new age terrorists".

He blamed acts of violence by the red-shirts on "provocation" by Berish.

Jamal dismissed claims that the red-shirts were inciting racial tension and that they were Umno members.

"Whatever they say, I don't care," he said.

Both Malaysiakini chief executive officer Premesh Chandran and editor-in-chief Steven Gan have denied Jamal's claim that the OSF grant was given with the aim of toppling the government.

A detailed explanation had been provided on this issue, while OSF has also denied that it is motivated by an agenda to topple governments.

Premesh has also clarified that the grant in relation to KiniTV was used to produce the Realiti Sarawak and Sekilas Bumi Kenyalang programmes.