A Young Malaysian Is Fundraising To Help Reduce The Country's RM1 Trillion Debt
The campaign is slated to end on 31 July.
By Katrina Khairul Azman — 27 May 2018, 04:12 PM
A young Malaysian has started a Go Get Funding campaign called 'Please Help Malaysia!' in the hopes of collecting donations to help reduce the country's RM1 trillion debt
"That is a lot of 0s," wrote the creator of the page, Nik Shazarina Bakti, referring to the staggering sum owed by the Malaysian government.
In the page's description, Shazarina wrote about the time when the rakyat contributed their jewellery, money and valuables so that Tunku Abdul Rahman, the country's first Prime Minister, could travel to London to claim Malaya's Independence
"Let’s do it again! And this time, WE are doing it! We can tell our children and grandchildren of this initiative that we all took part in to save Negaraku Malaysia," wrote the 27-year-old legal officer.
"If we could work together during the 14th General Election (remember, we trusted anyone who could help us), I am sure we can work together for another round," she added.
According to Shazarina, all proceeds would be channelled to the Government after 31 July, when the campaign is slated to end
Acknowledging the level of trust required in donating to a complete stranger, she explained that, "when the day comes, I will make sure to upload proof of the funds being channelled to the Government."
In the meantime, Shazarina updates the PayPal account summary daily.
At the time of writing, the campaign has received help from 92 backers, raising nearly USD3,633 (RM14,464) of its USD100,000 (RM398,000) target.
Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir and Maria Chin Abdullah have both publicly vouched for Shazarina and her initiative
"I know a lot of people have been wanting to help with our huge debt, which just shows how much Malaysians love their country," wrote the social activist in a Facebook post published on Friday, 25 May.
"This young person has taken her own initiative to do something by crowdfunding to save Malaysia. I happen to know her and am so proud of her."
"So if you can help, do support. Every little bit helps," she added.
In a similar show of support, Maria Chin revealed in an Instagram post that she has been approached by Shazarina, who asked if the politician could deliver the funds to the Ministry of Finance once the campaign has ended.
"Although we may disagree about having to use even more of the rakyat's money to settle the debt, we cannot deny that the debt is is still there and is a huge threat to all of us," wrote the former Bersih 2.0 chairman.
"Something must be done so that we can get back on our feet," she added.