Pakatan Harapan and Bersatu chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad has said that Putrajaya's proposal for a new law against fake news was "good," but is worried that it may be a guise to censor stories about the 1MDB scandal.

"Don't use it to censor articles or news about things that are true such as 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion (deposits in the prime minister's bank account) and others.

"These are not false, they are true. Separate the truth from what is described as false news. Don't use the law to cover up the truth," he said in a video released on Bersatu's Facebook page.

Also appearing the video was Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin, who accused Umno and BN of being perpetrators of fake news.

He claimed the ruling coalition had failed to explain several controversies, and had instead resorted to peddling fake news.

Like Mahathir, Muhyiddin was also worried that the proposed law will be used against the opposition.

"If the intention is to censor all forms of news and label news from the opposition as ‘fake news’, then this is unjust and an abuse," he said.

Muhyiddin said if Putrajaya were to proceed with its plan, it must be based upon data and facts in determining the veracity of a news item.