WELFARE contributions and assistance to orphanages must be carried out throughout the year and not just concentrated during the holy month of Ramadan, said operators of charity homes and shelters.

They told The Malaysian Insight that the seasonal help somewhat causes interruptions in their regular operations as they usually plan for a year.

The head of Amal Asyura care centre, Lutfatul Hana Zainalaludin said people should first check the requirements needed in a centre before deciding to “do good” by sponsoring food or other items so that there is no dumping and wastage.

“For those who want to contribute in the form of food, they will have to be wise. Not all centres or homes are the same and have the same needs. Excess contributions to a centre may well be given to another place which needs them more.

“It is quite common for people to be charitable during Ramadan. This has almost become a tradition. In reality, being charitable should not be a seasonal thing,” Lutfatul said.

He also expressed regret over the contributors’ “discriminative” behaviour by giving contributions to homes which are perceived to be “beautiful”.

Many average shelters do not have a regular income to run the operations and rely entirely on donations and help from communities and charity sales, he said.

“Those who want to contribute during Ramadan should be looking out for the really needy.

“The cost to manage these centres is high. There is rental to pay, mouths to feed and we need to educate the kids, too.”

The principal of Rumah Kasih Harmoni Paya Jaras, Jamaluddin Wahab, said people should be making financial contributions instead of food and clothes.

He said financial support is easier to manage by the shelters as it could be used to cover every aspect of running a place.

“So for me, I would prefer if people contributed money instead of food. Or, they could give us things which will last long. Inner wear is also a thing which we need as people would usually overlook this,” Jamaluddin said.

Many are wary about giving financial contributions as they fear that their money would be abused and not used for the intended purpose, he said.

Rumah Safiyah Alam Jaya manager Amirul Syahid Yaakop agreed with the sentiment but said that most shelters are genuine and put the financial contributions to good use.

“At Rumah Safiyah, we issue receipts (for donations) and contributions to us for tax relief. We are audited by the Inland Revenue Board every year.

“We will be blacklisted if we abuse the funds. Our donors need not worry about any abuse here,” he said.

Amirul said the centre also shares surplus of things received with other nearby centres.

He said that the sharing programme runs throughout the year and not only during Ramadan.

“We have a good cooperation with the community at Puncak Alam. Whatever excess stuff that we have, we channel them over to nearby centres or tahfiz.

“The local community is helpful. The civil societies as well as the Puncak Alam mosque are always in touch with us, asking us about what we need.” – June 6, 2019.