CAIRO- Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has advised volunteer teams and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) from Malaysia who wish to provide aid to the victims of the conflict in Gaza to ensure their assistance is needs-based.
The Prime Minister acknowledged that the intentions of these NGOs and volunteer teams were good, but he emphasised the importance of consultations with relevant authorities before delivering aid to ensure it truly benefited the victims.
"Don't purchase based on our preferences; this is the issue with the organisations that send aid. Their intentions are good, but sometimes, what is purchased is not what people need. We need to hear from the people of Gaza themselves what they want.
"In the case of medicine, there are several types, and they must be properly labelled... Therefore, there are several methods that must be followed. The same goes for food, they have no cooking facilities, so they need ready-to-eat food in cans, some have also informed that they do not consume instant noodles.
"So in this matter, don't purchase until we know (what the people of Gaza need)," he told Malaysian journalists during a press conference at the end of his two-day working visit to Egypt today. - BERNAMA
The Prime Minister acknowledged that the intentions of these NGOs and volunteer teams were good, but he emphasised the importance of consultations with relevant authorities before delivering aid to ensure it truly benefited the victims.
"Don't purchase based on our preferences; this is the issue with the organisations that send aid. Their intentions are good, but sometimes, what is purchased is not what people need. We need to hear from the people of Gaza themselves what they want.
"In the case of medicine, there are several types, and they must be properly labelled... Therefore, there are several methods that must be followed. The same goes for food, they have no cooking facilities, so they need ready-to-eat food in cans, some have also informed that they do not consume instant noodles.
"So in this matter, don't purchase until we know (what the people of Gaza need)," he told Malaysian journalists during a press conference at the end of his two-day working visit to Egypt today. - BERNAMA