The Salvation Army Penang Open Day 2023
SPEECH BY THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW
The Salvation Army Penang
Open Day 2023
8A, Logan Road
07th October 2023 | 10.30 am
Officers of the Salvation Army
Members of the Organising Committee, Distinguished Guests, Sponsors & Donors
Volunteers & Staff of The Salvation Army
A very good morning to all of you.
I would like to thank The Salvation Army for inviting me today, and for letting me be part of this event. It is indeed a pleasure to be here.
We are gathered here today for one common goal – to help raise funds for The Salvation Army Penang.
The Salvation Army Penang has a long history of helping the underprivileged, especially children, in its Home at Logan Road. Since 1938, The Salvation Army has provided a caring home, and guidance to many boys who have grown up in the Salvation Army Home. Many are now contributing back to our local communities by being good and law-abiding citizens with families of their own too. This is a success story for an NGO like The Salvation Army which has successfully transformed many lives which seemed destined to be bleak or destitute.
Knowing very well of the contributions of our NGOs in Penang towards the welfare of the people and to certain special interest groups, the Penang state government is always more than willing to partner with or to collaborate with the NGOs towards a common aim. This could be seen during the Covid-19 pandemic years when NGOs in the state supported the state government and vice versa especially when it came to pooling our respective limited resources at the time to face the impact on our socio-economic well-being and healthcare system.
We have never forgotten all that has taken place during those difficult years. After seeing how things can work out despite all such challenges as long as we work together, the Penang state government feels that we too have an obligation to support the good work of our local NGOs. This is done through an annual grant of RM2 million by the state government to NGOs in Penang which we have pledged in our Penang Unity Manifesto this year. We hope with this annual allocation, our Penang NGOs, which are already reputed to be among the most active in the country, can remain focused and steadfast in continuing your good work.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
When you help a child, you help a community. Because when a child faces life’s challenges such as poverty, illness or death in the family, it is extremely important to protect and care for the child, while providing hope and love so that the child will be able to overcome this adversity. Because of what The Salvation Army has been doing all these decades, hundreds of Penang boys have found their sense of belonging in a home which offers them love, protection and guidance. To every Penangite, I would say this is the time to support The Salvation Army’s work here in Penang.
I was told that The Salvation Army Penang Children’s Home requires about RM13,000 a month for their monthly expenses. This includes food, medical care, school supplies, transportation, utility bills, and for the maintenance of the facilities to ensure the children have a safe place to live in. I hope The Salvation Army Penang is able to achieve the target of RM160,000 from today’s event.
Moreover, there is also The Salvation Army Family Thrift Store at Jalan Perak, which receives donated items to be resold at affordable prices. I am glad that The Salvation Army is doing this to reduce unnecessary waste at our landfills, and to encourage a circular economy amongst our community. This is in-line with the state government’s initiative to promote a greener environment.
So, for everyone who is here this morning, let us all do our part to support The Salvation Army Penang. Go visit the many stalls here, buy from them to support them. Let’s help The Salvation Army Penang hit its target amount before the end of the day.
Thank you.