THE former four-star Grand Seasons Hotel in Kuala Lumpur has been converted into a halfway house for the poor affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Federal Territories Minister Annuar Musa said today the Rumah Prihatin@Grand Seasons will be handed over to a group of civil societies led by Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan (YWP) to assist the poor during the pandemic.

“This is in collaboration with the Grand Seasons Hotel,” Annuar said.  

“This programme will offer six main components in line with the Wilayah Cakna and Wilayah Prihatin concepts to assist the people.

“The six components are Prihatin kitchen, food bank, Prihatin accommodations, Prihatin mental health services, Prihatin vaccination services, and Jejak Prihatin operations centre.”

Some 30 people turned up for food at the launch today.

Some 300 rooms have been reserved for front-liners and the poor, based on requests.

Annuar said YWP will run this programme for two years on a six-month rotation basis. 

The hotel had previously shut down on February 28, 2019. It has more than 600 rooms.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said there was no need for anyone to fly a white flag for help because the government is providing aid to targeted groups.

He was commenting on the social media-driven white flag campaign, which was launched at the beginning of the month to help families in need of assistance.

“There is no need to hang a white or black flag, but it’s okay to hang a blue flag,” Muhyiddin said, referring to the Perikatan Nasional colour, which is blue. – July 15, 2021.