MERSING, JUNE 24 — The MADANI government is committed to strengthening efforts to reach out to the people through the Ziarah Kasih programme, which, among other things, aims to provide direct assistance to those in need.
Political Secretary to the Minister of Communications, Abdullah Izhar Mohamed Yusof, said the approach reflects a commitment to bridge the gap between the government and the people, thus helping to ease the burden faced.
“This initiative is an ongoing government effort with recipients identified from the Information Department and the MADANI Community and will continue from time to time,” he told reporters at the Jiwa@Komuniti MADANI Sembang Santai World Cup Edition Programme in Endau, here, on Tuesday.
He said the programme would be continued periodically as an effort to ensure that the welfare of the community was maintained, in line with the aspirations of MADANI Malaysia which emphasised the well-being and concern for the people.
Abdullah Izhar also spent time caring for senior citizens facing health problems and presented donations and health equipment as a sign of the government’s concern for the welfare of the people.
Among the recipients is Hamdan Abd Latif, 71, who is currently bedridden due to a stroke and is being fully cared for by his wife, Meriam Abd Wahab.
Meanwhile, Meriam, 66, said he was grateful for the assistance he received because it had helped to reduce the burden he faced.
She said her husband, who is also a retired firefighter, fell while fishing for shrimp in 2011, about two weeks before his scheduled mandatory retirement, and a doctor’s examination confirmed that he had a brain tumor and had to undergo surgery.
Meriam said Hamdan was later confirmed to be free of the tumor, but the effects of the disease slowly affected her husband’s health before he suffered a stroke after falling in the toilet last year.
“I used to sew to supplement the family’s income, but now I can no longer do that because I have to focus full time on taking care of my husband,” she said.
Another recipient, Zainon Ibrahim, 91, is cared for by his son, Jamaluddin Ismail, 64, who decided to quit his job to care for his mother about two years ago, in addition to being helped by his other siblings.
“Thank you for the government’s concern for us, at least we can help cover the necessities for my mother,” said Jamaluddin, who previously worked as a supervisor.
— BERNAMA
![KUALA LUMPUR, JUNE 24 -- The Child Protection Code (CPC) sets out a safe, practical and responsible age verification mechanism to ensure that only eligible users are allowed to access social media platforms. Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said the CPC together with the Risk Reduction Code (RMC) were published by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) on May 22, and came into effect on June 1 under the Online Safety Act 2025 [Act 866]. He said both codes aim to create a safer online environment, particularly to protect children from online risks and harm. "Under the CPC, licensed service providers offering social media services are required to implement an age verification mechanism, rather than identity verification, to ensure compliance with the minimum age limit set. "Users who have reached the age of 16 are allowed to register and have social media accounts, while individuals under that age are not allowed to open or have social media accounts until they reach the specified age," he said during a question and answer session at the Dewan Rakyat, today. He was answering Syahredzan Johan's (PH-Bangi) original question regarding the purpose of implementing age verification for social media accounts, as well as measures to ensure access to personal data is restricted and deleted after use. Fahmi said the implementation of the mechanism should be done safely, practically and respectful of user privacy, in line with the requirements set out under the CPC. Social media service providers are also required to ensure that the process complies with laws relating to personal data protection, including the principles of data minimization, and purpose limitation by limiting data collection to information necessary for age verification purposes and disposing of it upon completion. He said the age verification mechanism should be implemented based on official documents issued by the Malaysian Government such as MyKad, passport, birth certificate or other documents recognised by the government. "To ensure that the age verification mechanism is not manipulated, age verification must be supported by official government records and not just self-declaration." "The CPC also allows the use of other documents recognised by the Malaysian Government, including equivalent records issued by competent authorities in other jurisdictions so that access to online protection can be provided equitably to all children regardless of their documentation status," he said. Fahmi said the implementation of age verification does not permanently prevent children from using social media, but rather postpones account ownership until they reach the age of 16, and have a more appropriate level of maturity to use the platform safely and responsibly. He said the approach known as the "Wait 16" initiative was introduced to protect children and families from online risks and harm. -- BERNAMA](https://minutesmy.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/TB_Fahmi-Fadzil-Dewan-Rakyat_BERNAMA-1024x576.webp)
