Help for the needy

By WONG LI ZA

More people will qualify for welfare aid under the Government’s Social Safety Net programme.

DURING an economic downturn, everyone feels the pinch, more so the poor or those living below the poverty line income.

According to the Economic Planning Unit, 16.5% of the Malaysian population lived in poverty in 1990. Twelve years later, in 2002, the rate dropped to 5.1% and last year, the poverty rate stood at 1.8%.

However, the actual number of poor people could well be higher, considering the high cost of living in urban areas and the current economic crisis.

A group of disabled people displaying their JKSM cards which act like identity cards, proof that the cardholder is on the social aid scheme.

One government mechanism that provides social support to the poor and needy is the Malaysia Social Safety Net or Jaringan Keselamatan Sosial Malaysia (JKSM) programme.

It involves various ministries and government agencies, including the Ministries of Health, Education, Housing and Local Government, Human Resources, Agriculture and Agrobased Industry, Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development, Rural and Regional Development, and, Women, Family and Community Development.

The social support given comes in various forms which include financial aid; food, fertiliser and fuel subsidies; free education, textbooks and uniforms; affordable hospital care and skills training.

Last year, a total of RM350mil was allocated to the Social Safety Net programme. This year, the amount has been raised to RM850mil.

Senior citizens above the age of 60 who are ill, not able to work and living in poor conditions are also eligible for the Government’s social welfare aid.

An important aspect of this social support is the Federal Welfare Aid given via the Social Welfare Department under the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.

“My ministry is only one part of this whole scheme and we are very focused on the so-called non-productive groups. They include senior citizens aged above 60 who are ill, not able to work and living in poor conditions, children aged below 18 from poor family backgrounds, and the disabled.

“We are involved in giving basic financial support to such groups,” said Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen.

On Feb 25, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi together with Dr Ng launched a revised Malaysia Social Safety Net programme and a new Social Safety Net Card (Kad JKSM).

Under this Safety Net programme, more people will qualify for welfare aid.

The new Malaysia Social Safety Net Card or Kad Jaringan Keselamatan Sosial Malaysia (JKSM) under the Social Welfare Department of Malaysia.

In previous years, welfare aid was given to the hardcore poor who, according to the Economic Planning Unit, are those with a household income of less than RM430 in Peninsular Malaysia, RM520 in Sarawak and RM540 in Sabah.

This year, the Ministry is extending aid to those with a household income of less than RM720 in Peninsular Malaysia, RM830 in Sarawak and RM960 in Sabah, or those living below the average poverty line income.

“From this year, we are extending the social safety net. This means that the number of people eligible for aid will double,” said Dr Ng.

“Last year, 150,000 people from about 50,000 families qualified for aid. This year, we expect at least 110,000 families to benefit.”

Dr Ng stressed that the poverty line income only serves as a guide or the initial entry point for eligibility of aid. Final approval will depend on investigations by welfare officers who will look into factors like the living condition of the families, the number of children and dependants, age of applicant or head of household, physical disability, and health conditions due to disease or illness.

This year, those who qualify for aid will also receive the new Kad JKSM, an electronic chip card which replaces the manila cards that people on welfare have been using since Independence.

“The card represents a new system of delivery to recognise eligible recipients. It is also (a tool) to create awareness about the welfare aid as we are determined to provide aid to those who are truly in need,” said Dr Ng.

“The card is like an identity card to prove that the cardholder is on the JKSM scheme. Later, we hope to link the card to public transportation systems and even outlets with special benefits for these groups of people.”

Each JKSM card is valid for a year and has to be reviewed annually.

“We do not want the poor to remain poor forever. We also want them to move out of poverty.”

To reach out to people in need of aid, the Social Welfare Depart­ment launched Projek Cari last October.

Under the project, 850 temporary welfare officers were hired for six months from October to go down to the ground and identify, register, investigate and speed up applications for the welfare scheme. These officers work in tandem with the existing 7,000 welfare officers in the country.

From Oct 1 to Jan 31, 70,000 new cases were identified, of which 25,000 have so far been approved. About 7,500 people did not qualify or pulled out, while the rest are still under investigation.

“Projek Cari has proven its effectiveness. The aim of the project is to reach out to as many people as possible and to create awareness. It is ongoing until March 31, after which we will review it and see if we need to extend it,” said Dr Ng.

She hopes local leaders will help identify those in need and bring them to the department’s attention.

“I want to strengthen the whole welfare delivery system in Malaysia from the context of entry point, human resource and also the JKSM card as we move towards 2020,” she said.

Aid list

THE Federal Welfare Aid scheme under the Social Welfare Department offers:

> A general monthly allowance of RM80 per person, up to a maximum of RM350 per family, subject to a household income of below RM720 for Peninsular Malaysia, RM830 for Sarawak and RM960 for Sabah.

> RM300 a month for poor senior citizens aged above 60, subject to a household income of below RM720 for Peninsular Malaysia, RM830 for Sarawak and RM960 for Sabah.

> RM100 a month per child for families earning below RM720 in Peninsular Malaysia, RM830 in Sarawak and RM960 in Sabah. This aid is subject to a maximum of RM450 per family.

> RM300 supplementary work allowance a month for a disabled person who is working and earning below RM1,200 a month.

> RM300 a month for a non-working caregiver who looks after a debilitated/bedridden person at home. This is provided the family income is less than RM3,000 a month.

> From January this year, RM150 a month will also be given to a disabled person who is unemployed despite efforts to find a job.

To apply for welfare aid and the JKSM card, go to your nearest Social Welfare office or call the Ministry’s Talian Nur hotline at 15999.

Sources: The Star

Stop the abuse of bays meant for disabled

Stop the abuse of bays meant for disabled

JUST the other day, I was at one of the biggest shopping malls in Klang. It was a crowded Sunday and also the last day of the school break.

What amazed me was that as I was walking in to catch a movie, I noticed that many cars were parked at lots reserved for the disabled.

And all these cars had no stickers indicating the owners were disabled.

I even noticed a man coming out from his car at a disabled person’s parking lot and coolly walking inside the mall.

He was not handicapped and he had a Polis Diraja Malaysia sticker and a Parliament sticker on his car. Also, he was wearing a T-shirt of a local telecommunications company which was having a promotion at the mall.

I’m very disappointed that the mall’s management did nothing to stop this from happening.

The Klang Municipal Council (MPK) should provide stickers for disabled people to stick on their cars and the regulations should be strictly enforced. Malls should clamp cars without such stickers but parked at a disabled person’s lot and those who defy such regulations in town areas should be issued with summonses.

J. JEYAMALAR,

Klang.

Sources: The Star

Looking for toilets

WHEEL POWER
By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

The search for a model disabled-friendly rest room yielded some interesting results.

I WAS involved in an unusual assignment a week ago. Together with another gentleman in a wheelchair, and accompanied by a team of experts from the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ), our motley crew went out as “roving investigators” in Petaling Jaya.

We went to look at, of all things, toilets. And we were only interested in loos that were user-friendly for disabled and elderly individuals.

The purpose of our trip was to come up with a good prototype design of a restroom that would be user-friendly for the handicapped.

Our first stop was a well-known hotel. We oohed and aahed at most of the outfit’s disabled-friendly designs. The most impressive was the entry/exit door of the loo, which was an electronic one.

All a patron in a wheelchair needed to do was press a button with one finger and presto: it would open for him. Once inside, he has only to push another button. The door closes, offering him all the privacy he needs.

If only all other hotels in the country would follow the good example of the hotel we visited and provide electronic doors as well, it would make the lives of disabled and elderly persons much easier when they visit such outfits.

Even though posh hotels may have disabled-friendly loos, little attention is given to the doors. The doors are often so heavy that we have a hard time trying to open them.

Not everything was smooth-sailing during our assignment. Together with the good came the not-so-good.

We had a lesson on how important it was to train everyone to handle an emergency.

When we tried to get into the loo for the first time, it suddenly got locked and refused to open until 20 minutes later. None of the staff knew how to open the door.

They claimed the person in charge was not around. Fortunately, this was not a real emergency. We dreaded to think of what could have happened if a disabled person had fallen inside the loo and needed help.

It was disappointing too that the five-star hotel had a steep ramp at its entrance which disabled guests were forced to use to access the building.

The reserved parking lot for the disabled was located far from the entrance to the building.

The management promised to rectify the situation soonest possible.

Our journey also took us to Ikea and Ikano shopping centres in Mutiara Damansara.

No sooner had we arrived when we were greeted by smiling security guards at the generously-sized parking lots for the disabled. These people are so serious about their car parks for the handicapped that they clamp any unauthorised cars and make them pay a fine for abusing the facilities.

The money collected is donated to a local charity for the disabled.

I was shocked to hear about the reactions of some people who misuse the disabled parking bays. One or two of them even resorted to violence when their cars were clamped, I was told.

The majority, however, were apologetic when they realised the error of their ways.

As for the toilets, especially Ikea’s, I think they have close to the perfect one I’ve seen so far.

The toilet is spacious enough for a helper to accompany a disabled person. There’s an alarm bell (panic button) in case of an emergency and even a face mirror that leans slightly downwards from a strategic height to allow a wheelchair-user to view his upper body.

We were all touched by the willingness of these two shopping centres to improve on what they were providing for shoppers

Sources: The Star

Plight of the disabled

By LOOI SUE-CHERN

TOILETS for the disabled are often too small or are locked.

These are some of the problems faced by the disabled at some places in Penang, said Society of Disabled Persons (Penang) former president Tan Kuan Aw.

Tan, who is wheelchair-bound, said there were also toilets for the disabled which had been turned into storerooms because the managements of buildings where these toilets are located think not many people use them.

He said there were specifications that must be complied with when facilities for the disabled are provided such as handrails for ramps.

But after studying the situation in Penang for a decade, Tan did not think the local authorities were serious when it came to ensuring that these specfications were adhered to.

“The setting up of a barrier-free facility like a toilet for people with disabilities just for the sake of it is a misunderstood concept. There are Sirim standards and requirements that need to be followed,” he said in an interview.

A check by The Star in public places around Penang proved Tan’s descriptions of several public toilets accurate.

One such toilet in a building along the Jelutong Expressway was so small that a disabled person in a wheelchair would find great difficulty to close the toilet door from the inside.

Tight space: A woman in wheelchair demonstrating how difficult it is to use the cramped toilet for disabled persons.

The reason for this, apart from the size of the toilet, is that the toilet door opens the wrong way. It opens inward, instead of outward or sliding.

Another toilet for the disabled persons in a shopping mall is occasionally locked and those who want to use the facility must find the cleaner who has the key, as instructed by a sign stuck to the door.

As for ramps, Tan said some were built without handrails. But in the case of the ramp at the Taman Sri Pinang flats on River Road, it was crossbars that has become a barrier for the disabled.

Stumbling block: A ramp with handrails is provided at Taman Sri Pinang but disabled persons, especially those in wheelchairs, cannot proceed further with the locked crossbars blocking the building's entrance.

Although the ramp has handrails, it is not barrier-free as there are crossbars at the bottom to prevent motorcyclists from using the ramp.

Women’s Centre for Change (WCC) committee member Lim Kah Cheng, who is an ardent activist for people with special needs, said the bars could also be a hindrance during emergencies like fires.

She said ramps could be designed in a way that motorcyclists could not misuse them, adding that the Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) had agreed to look into the matter.

“Instead of a ramp, a winding path that motorcyclists will find difficult to manoeuvre their vehicles on can be considered. The council already has the design which is not costly to follow,” said Lim, who is also an MPPP councillor.

Her other complaints include the putting up of signboards, road signs, advertisement boards and other obstructing objects in the middle of pavements or walkways; and high pavements.

Lim said the trick would be to get things right the first time - constructing buildings and providing public facilities that were universal.

“If you build a ramp, build one that is for everybody. What is good for the disabled is good for everyone else,” she added.

Danger lurks: This bus stop at Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong is unsafe for disabled persons, especially for the visually impaired and those in wheelchairs.

MPPP president Datuk Zainal Rahim Seman, when contacted, said the council would take serious note of the problems faced by the disabled with the existing facilites.

“Our officers will conduct checks on these facilities to see if they comply with the required standards. If developers do not comply with building requirements, we will not grant them the CFs,” he added.

Sources: The Star

CIMB Foundation empowers the disabled

Kuala Lumpur: Being disabled should never be a deterrent for anyone to excel and prove to the society that they are capable individuals. Their greatest wish is to be given fair opportunities including the chance to obtain formal education, professional training and employment.

CIMB Foundation’s Chinese New Year celebration today was a showcase of what the disabled can achieve if given the right opportunities. Four (4) non-government organisations (NGOs), who are among CIMB Community Link’s beneficiaries, were present at the event - Beautiful Gate Foundation for the Disabled, Pusat Majudiri ‘Y’ for the Deaf, Persatuan Braille Malaysia, and Persatuan Wushu, Tarian Naga dan Singa Jing Ying Kuala Lumpur. Through various initiatives, their members were provided with facilities and training to promote self-sufficiency and enabled some of them to earn an income.

Funded by CIMB Foundation, 15 individuals from the Beautiful Gate Foundation for the Disabled were able to take up broadcasting courses at The Voice Academy where they had an opportunity to run their own programme for the disabled on AiFm, a Chinese radio station under RTM and collaborated with NTV7 to produce a Chinese New Year programme in 2008; 14 individuals from Pusat Majudiri ‘Y’ for the Deaf (known as “YMCA Deafbeat”) were trained to play traditional Chinese drums and in performing arts and have since successfully performed in a number of public events; over 200 copies of the al-Quran in Braille format were produced and distributed to various schools for the blind enabling them to learn to recite the verses; and an acrobatic lion dance programme was specially tailored for enthusiastic deaf youths and coached by the Persatuan Wushu, Tarian Naga dan Singa Jing Ying Kuala Lumpur. The acrobatic lion dance troupe has been invited to perform at various events during the recent Chinese New Year celebrations including the CIMB Foundation event today.


“Through Community Link, CIMB Bank and CIMB Islamic branches have identified many worthy causes to be funded to benefit the communities served by the branches. We are very pleased with the results of these programmes, and the beneficiaries present today are a small cross-section of our success stories,” said Dato’ Sri Nazir, Group Chief Executive of CIMB Group. “I am proud of their achievements and we intend to continue our support through CIMB Foundation and empower these and other individuals to look beyond their disabilities and be independent,” he added.

CIMB Foundation also presented RM5,000 to each of the 4 NGOs. Datin Sri Azlina Aziz, wife of Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak, presented the mock cheques to the representatives of the organisations.

CIMB Community Link, is an initiative of CIMB Foundation, implemented by leveraging on the nationwide reach of CIMB Bank and CIMB Islamic’s 367 branch network. Over 180 projects with a budget of RM6.2 million have been allocated to Community Link projects since the inception of the programmes in May 2007.


Sources: CIMB Foundation

Company shares CNY joy with the disabled

Memento: Staff members of MNRB and Malaysian Reinsurance Berhad posing for a group photo with residents of Beautiful Gate Caring Centre.

MNRB Holdings Berhad (MNRB) and its wholly-owned subsidiary company, Malaysian Reinsurance Berhad (Malaysian Re) celebrated Chinese New Year with 43 disabled people of Beautiful Gate Caring Centre in Petaling Jaya recently.

They donated RM5,000 to the home and presented food hampers to the residents.

Beautiful Gate Caring Centre was established in 1995 and is located at No. 29, Jalan SS2/59, Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan.

Sources: The Star

A memorable anniversary dinner

By TAN KARR WEI

PETALING JAYA-based real estate agent Elvincom Realtor decided to include the less fortunate in its one-year anniversary celebration.

Besides its employees and business partners, about 50 guests from the Beautiful Gate Foundation for the Disabled and the Lovely Disabled Home, both from SS2, Petaling Jaya, also joined in the anniversary dinner at the Loong Foong Restaurant in Taman Mayang.

Elvincom Realtor office manager Wendy Chan said that organising events with the people from the disable homes has always been something close to her heart.

“That’s why I told my husband (Elvincom Realtor principal Elvin Liew) that we must include them during our anniversary celebration,” said Chan, who is also the Aman Suria Residents Association chairman.

It was a jovial atmosphere as all those present started the dinner with the auspicious yee sang toss to usher in wealth and prosperity for the year.

Enjoying their meal: Guests from the Beautiful Gate Foundation tucking into their eight-course meal.

Representatives from business partners like RHB Bank, Alliance Bank, OCBC, Public Bank and Malika and Lim gave out ang pow packets and Chinese New Year goodie bags to the guests.

Sources: The Star