Stop giving excuses for welfare aid delays
DAP questions state minister on why steps were not taken to avoid delay in the distribution of aid.
KUCHING: Not a reason, but an excuse, Sarawak DAP said of the state government’s explanation on the delays of the welfare aid disbursements.
DAP assemblyman for Pending, Violet Yong also questioned the state minister of Welfare, Women and Family Development Fatimah Abdullah when she remarked that she merely “hoped” that there would be no repeat of such delay.
Yesterday, Yong told a press conference that several welfare aid recipients had complained to her that they had yet to receive the funds for the month of September.
The press later questioned Fatimah on the issue at another press conference and was told that the slight delay in the disbursement of welfare aids was due to her ministry receiving the second disbursement of funds from the welfare allocation at end of September.
Fatimah said it had always been the practice that the ministry did not receive the funds in a lump sum from the federal Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.
“We received a RM99.6 million from the federal ministry early in the year. We knew from experience that it was not enough and could only last us until August.
“Based on the total number of welfare recipients, we knew exactly how much we needed with the contingency amount included just in case there is a rise in the number of welfare applicants,” she was quoted in a local daily today in a report on the delay which affected 44,000 recipients..
Fatimah said her ministry received RM50 million in the second disbursement from the federal ministry at the end of last month, which she anticipated would last until December.
“Hopefully, the funds would be disbursed on time next year,” she said.
Don’t blame technical glitch
Yong meanwhile claimed that she had heard of complaints of delayed disbursement in September the preceding year, and that there was no official explanation on the delay.
She said only the senior citizens had each received the RM300 per month payment which was distributed late while the children of the hardcore poor and disabled had yet to receive their aid of RM100 for the children and RM150 to RM300 for the disabled.
“A repeat means they have not resolved the problem. Now she (Fatimah) only hoped that next year’s allocation would be in time. That means that there is no guarantee that the problem would not recur then.
“Relevant actions must be taken so that there would be no repeat. It happened last year and again this year. If they know what the problem is, they would then know how to resolve it,” Yong said, adding that the minister was incompetent to take on the role.
“I believe they (the ministry) are aware that the first disbursement (from the federal ministry) would only last up to August. They should have taken early measures to ensure that the second disbursement is on time,” Yong, who is also the Sarawak DAP organising chairperson said when contacted by FMT.
She also chided the federal and state ministries as well as the respective ministers for their departments’ inefficiency.
“They should already know that it (the first disbursement) was insufficient and therefore, there is no reason (for the delay).
“It is the minister’s duty to make sure that the funds are disbursed on time as these people (the recipients) need the money to survive. They (the ministers and ministries) cannot simply say it is due to a technical glitch,” Yong said.
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