THE government today handed over donations totalling RM80,000 to the families of eight victims killed in the Batang Kali landslide today.

The donations, to two families, were presented by the prime minister’s senior political secretary Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin in Kampung Machap Baru, Alor Gajah, Malacca.

One of the recipients, Lai Hua Kiong, 54, lost four family members in the tragedy – son Lai Chee Sam, 33; daughter-in-law Lai See Tin, 33; and grandchildren, six-year-old Giselle Lai Yu Xi and two-year-old Jonas Lai Ze Kai.

The other recipient, Tai Seng Fui, 63, also lost four family members – son Tai Chang Lin, 35; daughter-in-law Yu Siew Pay, 34; and grandchildren, seven-year-old Tai Jing Key and four-year-old Tai Jing Rou.

Shamsul said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the government hoped the donation would help ease the burden of the families concerned.

“The prime minister also conveyed his utmost gratitude to the entire search and rescue team for working tirelessly until yesterday (in the search for the victims) and this certainly demands a high level of commitment.

“The prime minister and the government value their efforts and we hope they can be an example to other agencies to be able to work as a team and strive to provide the best service to the people,” he told reporters.

Also present were State Unity, Information, Human Resources and Consumer Affairs Committee chairman Ngwe Hee Sem and National Disaster Management Agency deputy director-general Khairul Shahril Idrus.

Meanwhile, Khairul said the donation would be given depending on the willingness of victims’ next of kin to accept it as there are family members who are still grieving over the incident.

He said the Socso will also make payments to the victims’ next of kin, taking into account the needs of the parties involved.

The tragedy, which occurred on December 16, affected 92 people. Sixty-one people were rescued and 31 others, comprising 18 adults and 13 children, were killed. – Bernama, December 25, 2022.