Ramasamy: Government might not know the best
The recent directive issued by the Minister of Defence Ismail Sabri that NGOs cannot distribute food and other essential items to the poor and marginalised groups could not have come at the wrong time.
Instead, Ismail made it a condition that food and other essential items to those affected by the spread of Covid-19 virus must be channeled to the government departments such as the Ministry of Women Development and Welfare for distribution to the targeted groups.
While it is understandable why the government has to come out with stringent measures to contain the spread of the virus, preventing NGOs from distributing food items directly is a wrong move, something that was not well thought or planned.
There are hundreds of NGOs in the country who are doing an excellent service in mitigating the worst effects of the virus.
During critical times especially during national emergencies, NGOs have performed admirable tasks to complement the services of the government.
NGOs operate at many levels and they are much knowledgeable about conditions faced by families and communities.
The government rather than drawling upon the services and expertise of these NGOs or members of civil society should not exclude them from providing essential services to the needy and the unfortunate.
While the government might have information at the macro levels, I doubt that it possesses information at the local levels.
This is why the government should tap on the information and expertise of NGOs in addressing the plight of poor families and communities at the present time of a national emergency.
Exclusion of the NGOs at a time like this might not be good for the country as whole.
The government might not have the financial resources to engage in food distribution, it should count on the assistance of the members of the civil society.
The government rather than asking the NGOs to channel materials to government agencies, a strategic plan should be worked out where both the government agencies and NGOs could jointly cooperate in distributing materials such as food to the affected families and communities.
In fact if the government agencies devise ways to support the NGOs, a system could be worked for a more effective distribution of the much needed essential items to those affected.
The rapid spread of the virus needs cooperation and understanding, but certainly not the idea that the government knows best.
P Ramasamy is the deputy chief minister II of Penang
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of The Leaders Online
