KUALA LUMPUR (April 21): Migrant workers and other vulnerable groups forced to go hungry because their employers have shut down to comply with the Movement Control Order are receiving a lifeline from citizens’ groups linking up around the country.

Through its #MakanKongsi initiative, election watchdog coalition Bersih 2.0 and its partners have raised some RM461,735 since the campaign was launched on March 20 after the MCO was imposed to contain the Covid-19 outbreak.

The coalition has tied up with 35 non-governmental partners and people who work among disadvantaged communities, including the urban poor, indigenous peoples, migrant workers, refugees, single mothers and the disabled.

“We have provided food vouchers, cash aid and essential provisions to the most at-risk individuals, families and villages,” the Bersih 2.0 steering committee said in a joint press statement with Engage, its partner in Johor.

“Often times, we who are more privileged in life do not fully appreciate what the have-nots have to go through daily. During this MCO period, a small amount of RM50 is the difference between starvation and surviving for another week for the vulnerable communities,” Bersih 2.0 chairperson Thomas Fann said to theedgemarkets.com.

“They live from hand to mouth, day to day. We must do all we can to ensure that no one goes hungry in this country especially when there are so much resources among us,” he said.

Five Cambodian workers who were stranded without food in Kluang, Johor were among the people who benefited from the #MakanKongsi initiative, Engage said in a post on its Facebook page.

Three weeks after the MCO was imposed, the workers ran out of money and food. They endured hunger for days before they managed to contact a #MakanKongsi working committee member.

“We immediately contacted our partner in Kluang and groceries were dispatched on the same day,” Engage said.

This was one of a series of stories of humanitarian aid provided through the #MakanKongsi initiative that Engage has shared on its Facebook page.

The campaign has helped to provide two meals a day to over 10,000 people.

However, the aid is only reaching a fraction of people in need, including those who are struggling to stave off starvation, Bersih 2.0 said.

Migrant workers make up 30% of Malaysia’s labour force of 15.8 million, according to the International Labour Organisation.

The activists are continuing with the fundraising drive to reach more people, such as daily wage earners who work for small and medium enterprises, which are themselves at risk of closure.

In a statement on its website, Bersih 2.0 said that those who wish to support the initiative may donate through its payment partner Bold.pay by credit card, debit card, online banking (FPX), e-Wallet (Boost, Grabpay, TnG, MCash, QRPay) at https://boldpay.cc/Catalogue/makankongsi or bank directly to its account at:

Maybank (PJ Old Town Branch)
Name: Bersih & Adil Network Sdn Bhd
Account No: 512295102931
Reference: MakanKongsi

Those who require a receipt from Bersih 2.0 can email their banking receipt to [email protected].

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