THE various food banks and soup kitchens that sprouted at the height of the movement-control order may have shuttered, but the number of people who require food aid is ever increasing, civil society groups said

Donations from the public have also slowed down, they added.  

Goh Teck Kuan, who is in charge of the Ji Shan food bank, said that most food banks that rode the wave of the white flag movement stopped operating within two months. 

“There are still a lot of people who require food aid, at least 40% more, but the stock of non-perishable food items is low,” Goh told The Malaysian Insight. 

“We are unable to give out large quantities of dry food as it has to be distributed among many people.” 

“Even businesses that used to contribute to the food bank have stopped doing so. 

“We understand the current state of the economy, so we don’t force them to donate.” 

The white flag movement on social media began on June 28 last year, the day former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced the RM150 billion Pemulih aid package after extending the MCO, which was already in place for a month for an indefinite period, further triggering public anger. 

It was not clear who started the movement but posts appeared on social media urging those who needed help or food to raise a white flag outside their homes, and others to respond by giving assistance. 

Ji Shan had set up collection points in two malls during this period. The organisation was established in Johor in 2017 but had received calls for help from Kuala Lumpur, Goh said. 

“Last year, we had to go and collect the donated items once a week, there were too many things and the collection boxes filled up,” he said. 

“Now, the boxes are only full after a whole month. We have been asking for donations on Facebook. 

“As long as someone donates, we are grateful. In cases of emergency, we will use our funds to buy food or provide cooked meals.” 

Goh added that food banks were also hit hard by inflation.

“We are now splitting one food item among three people. We can just hope that we don’t have to split it among more people. 

“No matter what happens, we will not shut the food bank,” he said. 

“The problem is that we don’t have resources to help people out of state, so we can only give them information on the nearest food bank.” 

He said that post-pandemic, the way the organisation distributed food had also changed. 

“We provide supplies to 200 families each week. We have asked them to find any job they can find. 

“If they work, be it part-time or full time, they will get more supply compared to the one who doesn’t. 

“We are doing this in the hope that they can find a way to earn a living.” 

HOL 448 food bank, which was set up in 2016 in Subang, Selangor is also facing a shortage of donations. 

Heng Sing Meing, who is in charge of the organisation, said donations had dropped by 60%. 

“Temples and businesses used to donate from time to time, but it is rare now as even they don’t have any budget,” Heng said. 

He added that since there were insufficient supplies, they had to cut down the number of items they provided from 16 to 12. 

The group helps low-income families, single mothers, orphans, and those who are ill. 

“Every month we provide supplies to more than 50 families.” 

Teh Chiou Shing, secretary of the Taiping Food Bank Association said post-pandemic, they were seeing a 30% reduction in donations. 

“During the pandemic, many people lost their jobs. Demand was high then,” Teh said. 

“We also received a lot of donations at the time, so we had no problems meeting the demand. 

“Due to the state of the economy, the number of donations has dropped significantly, so the number of items we distribute has also lessened.” – October 6, 2022.