Giving the signal: A man waving a white flag from a flat in Puchong, Selangor, to ask for help with daily provisions. AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star
PETALING JAYA: The White Flag movement where people who need aid are encouraged to hang a white cloth outside their houses is gaining momentum.
The idea that was birthed online and gained traction on Twitter with the hashtag #BenderaPutih had united Malaysians in their mission to help fellow Malaysians struggling amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Various groups have stepped forward and responded with food for those who signalled for help.
Along with fresh helping hands are five long-established non-governmental organisations that have been actively aiding those in need.
PETALING JAYA: Many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have urged the government to simplify the process of delivering aid to the needy during the lockdown period, which has been extended to June 28.
Doing their part: Kembara Kitchen crew preparing food packs to be distributed to the poor.
PETALING JAYA: The underprivileged and the homeless are not being neglected during Ramadan as soup kitchens continue to reach out to them amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kembara Kitchen co-founder Chan Yi-Lyn said the main challenges during the fasting month were movement restrictions and logistics issues.
“To safeguard our crew, movement is somewhat restricted, which makes food distribution a bit of a challenge.
“However, we potentially have a mobile kitchen programme in the works with a client.
“If we get this programme up and running, and if successful, it will definitely help financially, ” she said when contacted.
From socialite to volunteer Angela with volunteers distributing bags of care packages. –Picture courtesy of Angela Carto
ANGELA KARTO is a housewife, a mother of three, and is the wife of Erwin Azizi, and hails from Indonesia. She is also well known for being a socialite, but during the pandemic, Angela decided to reach out to communities in need.
“Before Covid-19, my family and I contributed, we sponsored a ‘Rumah Tahfiz’ for Rohingya orphans. Back then, I donated funds to organisations and whatnot. When Covid-19 came, we were on lockdown,” said Angela.
During the first lockdown, her daily routine changed. Her three sons began to ask her a lot of questions about why they could not go to school or go out and play and her husband was stressed because he could not go to work.
Covid casualties The coronavirus has also made numerous others broke and homeless.
PETALING JAYA: If there is one person who has witnessed the worst of the economic impact of Covid-19, it is Pandan Indah state assemblyman Izham Hashim.
“I used to get one or two persons coming to our community service centre every six months to ask for help because they faced financial difficulties,” he told theSun recently.
“But since the Covid-19 pandemic began in March, we have had more than three persons coming in to beg for help every month,” he said.
Constituents in Pandan Indah account for a large proportion of the urban poor.