Day: December 29, 2021

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 29 — The Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council (MAIWP) aims to lift some 3,000 to 5,000 asnaf (tithe recipients) out of poverty next year.

MAIWP chairman Tan Sri Dr Mohd Daud Bakar said the effort would be done through an asnaf development plan which would involve an allocation of between RM30 million and RM50 million a year.

“This is a five-year plan and it will be implemented through various programmes such as industrial training, entrepreneurship and business capital aid as well as educational assistance for asnaf children,” he told a press conference after the closing ceremony of the Kasih PRIHATIN-MAIWP programme here today.

Also present was Yayasan Prihatin Nasional (PRIHATIN) chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Aizudin Ghazali.

Mohd Daud said MAIWP has also planned to organise a graduation programme, symbolic of the asnaf’s journey out of the poverty circle.

In the meantime, a total of 35,719 asnaf have benefited from the Kasih PRIHATIN-MAIWP programme to date.

Mohd Daud said MAIWP had allocated RM3.5 million for the implementation of the programme which aimed to ease the burden of Malaysians affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, Inland Revenue Board deputy chief executive officer (policy) Datuk Mohd Jaafar Embong said PRIHATIN, in collaboration with DXN, also contributed RM1.56 million for the PRIHATIN x DXN post-flood special mission to assist flood victims in the Federal Territories.

DXN is a company that focuses on the cultivation, manufacturing and marketing of health food supplements, and was founded by Datuk Lim Siow Jin.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SEREMBAN, Dec 29 — A massive total of 1,151 tonnes of post-flood bulk waste was collected in the four districts of the state, with the cleaning operation from Dec 20 to yesterday steered by the Negeri Sembilan Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp).

Its director Mohd Zahir Shari said of the total, 427 tonnes were found in Seremban, Port Dickson had 371 tonnes, Jelebu 309 tonnes and Rembau 44 tonnes, with the aftermath waste consisting of furniture, clothing and electrical equipment.

“The (post-flood) clean-up work is expected to take quite a long time, especially in the rural areas in Jelebu which are badly affected. In the service area covered by SWM Environment Sdn Bhd, flood waste collection in the affected districts has been completed and the focus now is on clearing up drains filled with mud and sediments.

“The rubbish will be sent to domestic landfills while electronic or scheduled waste is to be managed by Kualiti Alam Sdn Bhd or recycled by SWCorp. This is because electronic goods need to be disposed of (in a secure environment) through e-Swis (electronic-Scheduled Waste Information System) registration,” he told Bernama here today.

He said the post-flood clean-up operation involved 38 RoRo (Roll On-Roll Off) Bin lorries, 14 open lorries, 14 units of water jets and 17 raking machines as well as the involvement of 204 staff working in collaboration with various agencies at the state and federal government levels, including local authorities (PBT).

Mohd Zahir said among the areas that were the focus for the clean-up operation were the housing and residential parks in each district.

Meanwhile, state Health, Environment, Cooperatives and Consumerism Committee chairman S. Veerapan said the process of managing flood waste in Negeri Sembilan, especially in Jelebu, was estimated to be completed within two to three weeks.

Apart from that, he said the state Health Department also carried out sanitation and fogging work in the flood-impacted areas to curb leptospirosis and dengue cases in the stricken areas.

“So far, there is one case suspected to be of waterborne origin but it is still under investigation by us,” he said.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 29 — Various companies have offered assistance to victims of the recent massive floods by providing free services to help restore their disrupted lives.

One such company is Artalive Malaysia that specialises in prosthetics and orthotics.

Its Clinical Director Sudarsan Swain said floodwaters can cause damage to prosthetic limbs and repair services are crucial to allow users to continue to cope with their lives.

“We provide free cleaning and maintenance of prosthetic limbs so that users can get on with life as usual,” he told Bernama Radio during an interview here.

Meanwhile, a business-to-business e-commerce marketplace has announced on its portal that it would provide construction material worth RM2,000 to more than 300 affected houses such as paint, cement, floor tiles, PVC doors and wiring as well as machinery rental services (backhoe) and Roll On Roll Off (RORO) bins.

Previously, national carmaker Proton has offered a 20 per cent discount on selected spare parts as well as on labour charges for all customers affected by the flooding.

Meanwhile, Perodua is offering towing service rebates, discounts on selected spare parts and free inspections for Perodua vehicles to all affected Perodua vehicle owners.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 29 –The number of flood evacuees continues to decrease in Pahang, Kelantan, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan as more relief centres were closed, while in Melaka the situation remains unchanged.

In PAHANG, the State Disaster Management Committee Secretariat informed that Bera has fully recovered from the floods with the closure of the last relief centre this afternoon, after 32 evacuees were allowed to return home.

Five districts namely Bentong, Temerloh, Maran, Kuantan and Pekan are still affected.

Meanwhile, the Social Welfare Department (JKM) Info Bencana application reported that 6,351 victims are still at 48 relief centres this evening, down from 7,319 at noon today.

According to the Malaysian Meteorological Department rain is expected in several places tonight in Kuantan and Pekan, while in other flood affected districts, the weather is favourable.

In KELANTAN, the number of flood victims also recorded a drop as of 5 pm today, with 42 victims from eight families compared to 54 from 15 families being housed at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Tok Deh in Pasir Mas, this afternoon.

Meanwhile, the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) through https://publicinfobanjir.water.gov.my, reported that no major rivers in the state were at the danger level.

In SELANGOR, according the JKM Info Bencana application 2,285 victims are still seeking shelter at 13 relief centres as of 5.03 pm today.

The National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) in a statement today said the Selangor Disaster Management Committee and the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) have been instructed to identify the best solution to accommodate residents who need to vacate their houses due to landslides and unsafe conditions.

In NEGERI SEMBILAN, according to the latest JKM Info Bencana data, the number of flood victims being housed at two relief centres in Jelebu, has dropped to 29 people from nine families this evening as compared to 36 from 12 families this afternoon.

In MELAKA, the number of evacuees remains unchanged at 26 people from eight families as of 4 pm today and they are at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Penghulu Benteng, Jasin relief centre.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency

SEPANG, Dec 29 — About 30 volunteers from the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) were mobilised to help clean the homes of flood victims through the ‘Operasi Bantu Hingga Selesai’ (Ops BAHIS).

Bernama volunteer team head Mohammad Suherman Anuar said the operation, organised by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry (KKMM), targeted to clean some 300 houses around Bukit Changgang in Kuala Langat and Taman Sri Nanding in Hulu Langat.

“Our volunteers, comprising staff from various departments, will participate in the operation from today until Sunday. We also help to hand over necessity goods contributed by Bernama and KKMM,” he said during the post-flood operation in Kampung Labohan Dagang here today.

He said Bernama volunteers, along with volunteers from the Information Department, were given the task to clean eight houses in the village from 10 am to 3 pm.

However, Bernama team stayed until 5 pm to clean the house of 72-year-old pensioner, Jaisin Sakur, and would continue to help other families tomorrow.

Also present during the BAHIS operation today were the news agency’s Chief Executive Officer Datuk Mokhtar Hussain, Editor-in-Chief Khairdzir Md Yunus, Deputy Editor-in-Chief (Business and Finance Services) Roslan Ariffin and acting Deputy Editor-in-Chief (News Service) Harlina Samson.

Bernama’s top management team also played their part in cleaning Jaisin’s house and treated the family and all other volunteers to lunch.

Earlier, Mokhtar presented essential items including a wheelchair, mattresses and pillows to Jaisin’s family who was badly affected by the floods.

KKMM today launched Ops BAHIS to help clean the homes of flood victims around the Klang Valley for five days until Sunday.

It aims to help clean 500 houses in three locations severely affected by the floods, particularly in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam; Bukit Changgang and Taman Sri Nanding.

Over 1,000 volunteers comprising ministry officials and KKMM agencies, local celebrities, creative industry associations and the media personnel will be mobilised for the programme.

Source: BERNAMA News Agency