KUCHING: He may be stateless but 17-year-old Alex Sendro Chai (left) dreams of the day he can wear a police uniform.
And he is hoping local non governmental organisations (NGO) will help him realise his ambition someday.
Without an official identification card, Alex has his work cut out for him in every sense but on Sunday, found a helping hand in NGOs.
The youngster who lives in Kampung Kudei Dungun, Satok, with his widowed and jobless father was one of the many underprivileged people NGOs reached out to here.
He will now be assisted with tuition, school needs and other necessary help from the Sarawak Humanity Development Association (PBIS) and the Lions Club Kuching.
“We want to assist the underprivileged people at Kampung Kudei Dungun who have been without basic utilities such as water and electricity. And most of all, we want to help the school going children there,” PBIS president and founder Manjeet Kaur Sidhu said to reporters during the visit to Kampung Kudei.
Manjeet, who is also a social activist, was accompanied by Lions Club member Helena Lim, social activist Gabriel Hii and his team, and the Malaysian Red Crescent Society, Stampin branch deputy chairman Chew Kim Soon and other members.
Some 138 residents at Kampung Kudei comprising 73 per cent natives, 18 per cent Chinese and three Indian families were given food hampers by the MRCS as well as saw their basic data being updated by the visiting NGOs.
According to Gabriel, the data was necessary to ensure school going children and the stateless people received immediate attention and assistance from the state government as well as the relevant authorities.
He said there were 220 children below the age of 12 staying with their respective families in the impoverished village which has been without water or electricity for more than 50 years.
Similarly, Chew also told reporters that he will follow up on the matter of the stateless children and people in the village with the state government.
Meanwhile, a local resident, one Alen, 60, said she has to take care of her five grandchildren aged 2, 3, 4, 6 and 11 as their parents have to work.
“I am no longer able to work so I am just taking care of my grandchildren,” said Alen, who also receives the Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH) from the government.
