Victims still waiting for help a week after floods in Malaysia

A week after a series of deadly floods swept most of Peninsular Malaysia, some victims claim they have yet to receive aid.

Laksa seller Rohkiah Abdul Aziz said she and her husband Rashdan Iswandi, as well as their neighbours, were turned away by officers at a relief camp in Selangor when they went there to get hot meals and some necessities. They were told the items were only for those living in a specific area.

"They told us to wait for help in our area and wouldn't budge although there were leftovers and unclaimed food. So we had no choice but to go back (home in Kampung Kubu Gajah)," she told The Straits Times yesterday, nine days after the floods hit them.

"Not even one government agency or lawmaker has come to help. We now see their true colours," she added.

Madam Rohkiah said to be eligible for aid, people had to fill up three forms - for the district officer, the assemblyman's service centre and the Islamic tithe authority. She added: "All the forms were filled on Dec 20... but it's been a week and we haven't heard from anyone."

Selangor was one of the worst-hit areas in the country's heaviest rainfall in the past 100 years.

As at yesterday, the death toll was 48, with five still missing.

In total, 22,573 people were in shelters yesterday, down from 35,076 on Sunday.

Although there are fewer people in relief centres across five states - Selangor, Kelantan, Pahang, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan - now, many are bracing themselves for the possibility of a second wave of floods.

A special task force has been set up to improve relief coordination, including providing help to victims and preparing for more floods.

"I call on the relevant agencies and departments that manage cash assistance to simplify the process and eliminate the bureaucratic red tape. They (flood victims) are already in hardship, do not inconvenience them," Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob told reporters on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Malaysia is seeking US$3 million (S$4 million) from the United Nations Green Climate Fund to develop a national plan that will help it adapt to climate change, the environment ministry said last week, amid deadly floods that displaced nearly 70,000 people this month.

The funds requested are paltry relative to the amount the country has pledged to spend on flood mitigation efforts, although experts say the plan's implementation would likely cost much more, reported Reuters.

Separately, the Prime Minister and some ministers have been criticised by netizens for their perceived publicity stunts while visiting flood-hit areas.

A clip of Datuk Seri Ismail digging up some dirt and then passing the spade to a Fire Department officer after just one shovel full went viral yesterday, drawing criticism of the government. He had visited the Hulu Langat area on Sunday as part of his "Keluarga Malaysia" communal clean-up programme.

Women, Family and Community Development Minister Rina Harun was criticised for posing with a water jet at a school that is being used as a flood relief centre. The Welfare Department, which is under her ministry, said she had used the water jet to remove lizard and bird droppings.

Opposition lawmaker Hannah Yeoh called the move "disappointing" and demeaning to the department's officers. "I know many JKM officers who are very dedicated to performing their duties. Many work hard to take good care of the flood evacuation centres," Madam Yeoh tweeted, referring to the department's Malay acronym.

"But the minister's stunt degraded the dignity of JKM employees. It's not fair to them," she said.