Despite the progress the country has made and figures of economic growth that we flaunt, there are undeniably people out there who live in abject poverty. The recent floods that ravished many parts of the country and captured on television showed how poor some victims were.
There are also pockets of urban and rural people who are equally living in poverty – Malays, Indians, Chinese and other other ethnic groups in the country.
To meet developed nation status by 2020, the elected government should come up with a better national anti-poverty policy to help alleviate the conditions of its poor and deprived citizens irrespective of their race or religion. In spite of everything we harp on relating to the differences in religious beliefs, it’s the teaching of every religion that the poor must be helped in the name of humanity.
Let this prick the conscience of our leaders. Poverty is colour blind and it can affect people of any race or religion. The elected government, therefore, has to be more sincere in poverty eradication through a strategic social policy reform with financial support from the private sector and the rich. In times of difficulty - such as during the recent floods in the country - help should be rendered to all people who are affected irrespective of ethnic groups to assure the people that we do have a fair-to-all elected government.
The recent street demonstration involving one deprived ethnic group would not have happened if there had been a strategic social policy reform to help all poor ethnic groups in the country. Leaders should be pro-active and not wait for grouses of this nature to happen before they act in response.
If there exists a bigger income gap between the rich and the poor and an increase in the number of poor citizens in the country, it is not going to bode well for the prosperity of the nation. We do not want to see a Malaysia 2020 with a big income gap between the rich and the poor and with large pockets of people living below the poverty level.
Poverty brings about other social ills in society and this is not healthy for the country. The rich would not be able to live in peace when they see poverty all round them. The poor thus need to have access to the basic needs in life. The poor who do not have access to traditional credit need to be helped. Tap the women force to help these poor households by engaging them in gainful employment or business.
There has to be an assessment of poverty across the board involving people of all races and subsequently, the poor should be given the opportunity of receiving small loans to start businesses. There has to be a bank to this effect to offer special rates and a good debt repayment schedules for low-income families.
The unemployed among them should be helped to find jobs. Financial support should be offered to help them meet their basic needs and that of their children’s education. Children should be helped with better nutritional diets. It is because of poverty the poor face debt problems and they need to be assisted before the poverty cycle is repeated endlessly.
Provide the poor with houses at reduced monthly payments. The elected government should help single mothers to be employed by creating day-care centres for their children as family commitments could sometimes be a barrier to them gaining employment.
Under an anti-poverty policy, the authorities could even go all out to attract investors from other countries and encourage them to set up their businesses in this country with incentives with a condition that the unemployed poor are recruited to work for them.
Health insurance benefits for the poor should be implemented to provide them with basic healthcare What is crucial for the country during this moment of truth is that there has to be sincere political will by the elected government to help the poor, irrespective of race or religion.
Helping the poor is helping to reintegrate them and this will bring about a better and more harmonious society for us to live in.
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