IPOH – Yayasan Perak has refuted claims that it will stop distributing food boxes to the needy, especially in areas represented by opposition assemblymen, starting next month.
Its administrative manager Mohamad Hidayat Abd Halim said as the agency responsible for coordinating the programme, Yayasan Perak would continue to channel the aid regardless of area and make improvements to ensure that the target group would directly benefit from it.
He said the foundation takes the various complaints received seriously, including allegations that items in the food boxes were repacked before political party logo stickers were put on them, the quantity of food packages was changed, and they were not distributed according to the quota and set period.
Hidayat said the act of repacking or putting other stickers on the boxes to cover the label of the types of food and the deadline for distributing the aid could result in the recurrence of unwanted incidents such as recipients receiving food items that have expired.
“Taking the complaints received seriously, Yayasan Perak has recommended that the distribution method be improved to ensure the aid reaches the target group and that the quantity and quality of the food items distributed are always satisfactory,” he said in a statement today.
As such, Hidayat said that beginning October, food boxes would no longer be channelled through any assemblyman’s community service centre but would instead be distributed directly by Yayasan Perak in collaboration with NGOs appointed by the foundation.
He also stressed that the foundation would ensure that every food box distributed to those in need was safe after going through the prescribed quality control process.
“Yayasan Perak is also committed to complying with the state government’s policy as set by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad so that the distribution of food box aid to the needy is done fairly,” he said.
“The foundation will continue to establish good relations with all elected representatives in the state and always be open to sharing information to ensure that those in need of food assistance in their respective areas are well served,” he said.
Yesterday, Perak opposition leader Razman Zakaria claimed in a Facebook post that the distribution of 50 food boxes for the opposition state constituency community service centres for the month of October had been stopped. – September 30, 2023