Charitable organisations do their part to obey order


A cooking lesson in progress for the homeless. Initiatives like this will be put on hold. — Filepic
WITH the spike in Covid-19 cases in the country and the movement control order by the Government, many non-governmental organisations (NGO) are taking a step back.

Sols 24/7 Malaysia stakeholder management director Alya Syahida Allias said they decided to temporarily call off all support programmes for the homeless commissioned to them by the Federal Territories Ministry and Kuala Lumpur City Hall, such as free baking, cooking, hair cutting and English language classes.

“We always advised our volunteers to look after themselves before looking after others.

“During our e-meeting on March 16, we decided to stop all these classes to reduce risk of Covid-19 transmission,” she said.

Teddy Mobile Clinic, a free clinic operating at three homes and two locations for the homeless, will stop its activities temporarily.

Its founder Dr S. Madhusudhan said they had about 80 volunteers on rotation, with between 10 and 40 people working at any one time.

“The volunteers are okay with continuing service but there is the risk of us bringing the virus back home and transmitting it to others, including the vulnerable elderly persons who may not be able to fight it,” he said.

Buku Jalanan Chow Kit, a transit learning centre for underprivileged children in the area, has announced through a circular that they have stopped recruiting volunteers and postponed all night classes on Friday and Sunday until further notice.

One of the many businesses that are making adjustments to help the vulnerable groups is Mydin Mohamed Holdings Bhd.

Its managing director, Datuk Ameer Ali Mydin, said the hypermarket will be open 30minutes earlier at 7am, instead of the usual 8am, for senior citizens and the disabled to shop in a less crowded store.

“We also have staff on standby to help these groups and a special payment counter for their convenience,” he said.

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