PEKAN, April 28 — Following his visit to Kuantan yesterday, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, today visited Pekan, where he presented contributions to 154 underprivileged people in the district.
In his visit to three mosques in the district, His Majesty was accompanied by the Regent of Pahang Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah, Tengku Panglima Raja Tengku Amir Nasser Ibrahim Shah, Tengku Arif Bendahara Tengku Muhammad Iskandar Ri’ayatuddin Shah and Tengku Panglima Muda Tengku Ahmad Ismail Mu’adzam Shah.
The presentations, held briefly in compliance with standard operating procedures (SOPs) to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, involved 52 recipients each at the Kampung Tanjung Batu Mosque and Kampung Pasir Panjang Mosque with another 50 recipients at the Kampung Tanjung Medang Mosque.
The recipients, comprising the elderly, orphans, asnaf (those eligible to receive zakat) and persons with disabilities (PwDs) each received cash contributions and basic necessities.
One of the recipients, Syed Bakri Syed Mokhtar, 46, a self-employed man from Kampung Tanjung Batu, said he would use the cash aid to buy school supplies for his two children, aged 14 and 13, as he was only earning RM800 a month.
“My salary and savings have been used to pay school fees, resulting in items including exercise books yet to be purchased. My eldest child has been accepted at his school hostel but still there are school supplies he has yet to buy,” he told Bernama here today.
Syed Bakri said that he was extremely grateful for the assistance since receiving a call from the village head yesterday, who asked him to come to the mosque to receive the assistance.
For Nur Azumah Osman, 62, the assistance will be shared among her eight children as part of Aidilfitri preparations, as she did not expect to be selected as one of the recipients.
Meanwhile, Ali Jafar, 63, from Kampung Tanjung Medang, will keep the cash for rainy days due to his unstable income, being self-employed.
“Less income during this Ramadan, as less work to do. I am very grateful for this assistance and it would be a pity to spend it all for Aidilfitri. My family will celebrate Aidilfitri in moderation, as long as there is still (money) as savings,” he said.
A single mother of five, Aishah Husin, 59, said that the assistance she received helped her save on household expenses, while the cash donation enabled her to prepare for Aidilfitri.
