Sustaining the spirit of volunteerism

by Professor Dato Dr. Ahmad Ibrahim,

THE recent floods that affected eight states across the country, leaving at least 54 dead and two missings, have exposed weaknesses in our management of natural disasters.  

Some areas, especially in Kuala Lumpur, were caught unprepared, and social media was inundated with unpalatable comments against the government for its apparent mishandling of the situation.

But there is something we can take heart from the sad episode - the exemplary spirit of volunteerism among the general public, especially NGOs and civil society. The youth made their presence felt as well, helping to clean up homes and other premises and also repairing electrical gadgets damaged by floods.  

If this demonstration of solidarity can pervade throughout the entire strata of society and leadership, we can look forward to better days ahead for the nation.

Amid the pandemic, climate disasters, and the web of scandals embroiling our country, there is still a feeling of hope among the common people. It is clear from the spirit of volunteerism that was demonstrated during the floods that Malaysians do not really have problems working together. Volunteerism appears to be the platform that can harness such togetherness. 

It may be time for a national program to inculcate the spirit of volunteerism among all Malaysians, particularly the young.

I have observed that the spirit of volunteerism is alive and well at most of our universities. At UCSI University, I have been most impressed with the initiatives taken by staff and students to help in many social causes. One that stands out is their involvement with the refugee community. The university's food catering business has helped some in the refugee community to ease their pains and struggles. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) group in the university is also actively helping to provide education for children in the refugee community. I am also impressed with a member of the staff who is always organizing programs to bring cheer to old folks in homes around Cheras.  

Volunteerism is clearly a character we should cherish and encourage in any community. The .. question is, how do we sustain volunteerism?

This is where schools have a strategic role to play. Children should be taught from a young age to embrace volunteerism. 

The effort to change society to be more caring can be better done with the participation of NGOs and civil society groups. We can see how this arrangement is working out well in many developed economies. Japan, for example, stands out as one country we should look to as a model.   

Studies have revealed that the spirit of volunteerism in Japan increased in the aftermath of the Kobe earthquake in 1995 after the authorities could not cope with the scale of the disaster, and volunteers were needed to help the injured and homeless in a timely way. These first groups of volunteers, in turn, created a general social expectation favoring a volunteer-oriented society, and the media, younger politicians, and leading citizens actively promoted this new type of civil society.

This "social expectation" led to the passage of a Law to Promote Specified Nonprofit Activities in 1998. It allows civil society organizations to easily acquire nonprofit corporation status, bolstering volunteerism activities in Japan today.  

The recent floods have shown us that we are on the right track. The challenge now is sustaining it.