The Chinese New Year ang pow given to 450 poor families residing in flats has turned into an issue as the sum is half of that given in previous years.

NONE At a press conference with 10 poor families today, DAP Cheras parliamentarian Tan Kok Wai (right in photo ) said that the 21 families renting the government flats in his constituency were taken aback to receive RM150 new year ang pow or 1Malaysia contribution on Feb 5.

He pointed out that in the last decade, the amount distributed by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to these poor families during their respective festivals was RM300.

Tan said that this year around, the DBKL should have at least raised the Ang Pow to RM500, taking inflation into consideration, enabling the families to celebrate with an easy mind.

He said that DBKL's RM 2.18billion budget, being the third highest in the country, has a record of extravagant spending on huge enforcement teams and horse units and so on.

"However, it's not willing to spend RM300 on an Ang Pow or RM135,000 in total for 450 poor families," he added.

Cutting to fit the situation

He said out of the 80,000 flat dwelling families in the capital, 450 Chinese families applied for the contribution.

Tan said he tried to contact the relevant authorities for an explanation, but to no avail.

Tan questioned whether the capital needed as many as 1,683 enforcement officers and a horse patrol unit with 39 horses and 96 officers.

Meanwhile, DBKL deputy director-general Mohd Amin Nordin Abdul Aziz, in a phone interview with Malaysiakini, explained that since the number of applicants has gone up, what's distributed has to be within the amount remaining in the allocation.

He said DBKL started to distribute the RM150 contribution during Hari Raya and Deepavali periods last year, and has received no complaints so far.

He added that the beneficiaries should not complain, instead they should be satisfied and be grateful.

He said DBKL may consider raising the rate of the festive contribution next year.

“DBKL has not recorded much increase in income, but our expenses getting bigger,” he said, adding it also helps the hardcore poor, single mothers, the handicapped and elderly and sometimes help them with their housing rental bill.

“(The residents) shouldn’t complain. It’s like a father giving (ang pow) to his son, sometimes its RM100 and sometimes RM200.”

Settling essential matters

To some, RM300 would not be much, but the residents who appeared at the press conference claimed they need it to settle housing rentals, power bills, kidney dialysis bills and other daily essential matters.

NONE Peter Yew, a 62-year-old retiree with heart disease, claimed he needs the money to settle outstanding power and flat rental bills.

Yew’s four children - one married and needing to take care of his wife and child, one still in school, one is mentally retarded, and one works in a handphone shop.

He said the family also depends on his 49-year-old wife who works at a spare parts shop for a living.

“We haven’t celebrated Chinese New Year in many years. No new clothes, no new year things, and DBKL’s ang pow is not to celebrate new year.”

He said there were years when the family only had instant noodles during the New Year’s Eve reunion dinner.

Yew and his family are renting a flat at PPR Sri Alam, Sungai Besi.

Meanwhile, kidney patient Chong Ngan Mooi, 80, said she needs the money for her dialysis bill, where she needs to pay RM50 each treatment.

Chong’s sons, both in their fourties- one being unemployed and the other a part-time worker at a construction site and doing welding work.

NONE She expressed her worries as she felt her sons would not be hired due to the competition from foreign labour.

Tan Moon Chee, 63, said she needed the money to prepare for the worst, as her son has been retrenched and unemployed for three months.

She, however, said she would spend part of the ang pow on preparations for Chinese New Year.

Although disappointed with the ang pow, she said she will plan to use the money in the most economical way.