Families grateful for assistance

 

Thankful: Rohana (left), who sells tiffin carriers for a living, says the aid is a beacon of hope, especially for those who have lost their income, while Siti Aisyah says the loan moratorium is a relief.

PETALING JAYA: Those in the M40 and B40 groups say the various forms of aid from the government is providing some relief to them in the midst of the pandemic.

Single mother of five Roziana Abdul Rahman, 40, who lost her husband last year, said the handout under the Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat (BPR) means a lot for folks like her.

On June 28, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin announced that under the Pemulih (Pakej Perlindungan Rakyat dan Pemulihan Ekonomi) package, hardcore poor families will get RM500 in August, RM500 in November and RM300 in December, while other B40 households will get RM500 in August and RM300 in December.

Roziana, who is staying at the PPR Sri Semarak, Setapak, said making ends meet meant depending on handouts and the kindness of those around her.

“Every bit of help from the government counts. My late husband was a construction worker who did not have a fixed income. When he passed away last August, I decided to take on the moratorium under the ASB moratorium for my loans.

“This helped relieve me financially somewhat as I did not need to worry about banks chasing me for six months.

“I also took out my i-Sinar. Although it is my money, the government enabling this really puts cash in my hand.

“I managed to be accepted for the BPR for single mothers with children for this second round, and this will help me as I cannot go out to work right now.

“The children have online classes and I need to be home to monitor them,” said Roziana, who used to be a runner for companies doing deliveries.

Other than the cash handout under Pemulih, Roziana can also register under MyFutureJobs to look for jobs and be eligible for a one-off RM300 allowance.

In Kota Kinabalu, kitchen assistant Lee Ming Siong, 37, has been living off people’s kindness for months ever since his salary was deducted by half following the pandemic.

The father of three young children said it is quite difficult for him to make ends meet with only a household income of about RM2,000.

“After paying loans and car instalments, utility bills and what-not, we only have less than RM1,000 for food and other things,” he said, adding that he had been using all the government assistance he received to repay debts.

He said with the recently announced assistance for families like himself, he could at least use a portion for his family’s expenses.

“I am also ashamed to say that I haven’t been able to pay our RM450 monthly house rental for over a year, but thank God the owner is kind enough to let us stay on till today,” Lee said.

In Johor Baru, aid recipients hoped the application system for BPR will be made more elderly-friendly and easier to access.

Single mother Rohana Mustafa, 55, said the community was eager to receive aid under Pemulih, but at the same time, appealed for assistance for those having trouble dealing with the digital interface.

“Most of the issues that I’ve come across are remembering the password or how to make an appeal, because it is not something that this group deals with regularly.

“There are also those who are living in the rural areas, and could not travel outside due to the movement restrictions, so I hope that the government can help them,” said the mother of three who sells tiffin carriers for a living.

Rohana said the aid announced by Muhyiddin is a beacon of hope, especially for those who have lost their income.

“It is very much welcome, and I hope that it would help others fend for themselves, as it has for me,” she said.

Sharing the same opinion is Johor Baru OKU Welfare Support Association president Jamaluddin Abdul Malik, 43, who said there were cases of persons with disabilities (PWD) who could not fill the applications themselves due to their physical limitations.

“We were very grateful for the financial assistance of RM500 a month for three months for unemployed PWDs, because the majority of our association members are those who fend for themselves and their families.

“It is not easy for a PWD to find a job, and it is even harder during a pandemic, so I would like to really thank the government for not excluding us from this round of financial aid,” he said, adding that he also hoped the government would make it easier for PWDs to apply for the Prihatin Special Grant (GKP).

“There are a few cases where our GKP applications would be rejected even though we are running an SME. So to whom do we turn to?” asked Jamaluddin.

Meanwhile, business management graduate Siti Aisyah Aminah Hanafiah, 23, said the three months’ National Higher Education Fund Corporation loan moratorium a relief.

“I’m currently working at a private company with a salary of RM2,000, my car monthly payment is about RM500, and with insurance and phone bills, that easily take up a third of my salary.

“So having that moratorium will surely help put more food on the table for my family and for my personal savings,” she said. - Star