Superb makes volunteerism appealing
Published on: Sunday, December 28, 2014
KOTA KINABALU: This writer visited Beaufort town recently for the Bagandang Festival celebrations, but instead found himself drawn to a group of youths who called themselves "SUPERB". Youths flocked their tent, which had buskers, carom tables, a selfie corner and a membership recruitment drive. Superb, short for "Sukarelawan Parlimen Beaufort" (the Beaufort Parliamentary Area Volunteers), is a club for the district youths that helps them engage in community work.
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It was the brainchild of the Beaufort MP Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun, who is also the Deputy Minister for the Women, Family and Community Development. She was inspired to form the club after witnessing youths rally together to help victims of the worst flood to hit the district, last February. Beaufort, one of the 25 districts in Sabah, is located about 100km away from Kota Kinabalu. Its population is made up of various ethnicities such as the Malays, Kadazan-Dusun, Bajau, Murut, Chinese and Indian. Superb Coordinator, Mohd Halbi Abd Hassan, 30, said the club started operating on Sept 20, with 10 of the most active members in the district.
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"Before Superb was set up, the volunteer activities here were limited to several fields due to the lack of awareness among youths. Some of the activities did not truly focus on volunteerism. "Superb inspires these youths to become the frontliners of welfare, community and volunteerism work - not just during disasters, but at all times," explained Halbi.
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He said its members were community machinery that were ready to be deployed at any times, but particularly during natural disasters. They would be stationed at flood relief centres to carry out tasks like the packing, distribution and delivery of aid to victims. The club currently has 600 members throughout the district with the population of 66,406 people. It is targeting 1,000 memberships by the year end, through roadshows and its Facebook account "Sukarelawan Belia Parlimen Beaufort". Beaufort, like many other places, is not without social ills. Halbi said the three major problems plaguing the district were inappropriate mingling between the sexes, misuse of drugs and the "rempit" menace. Superb attracts youths that are usually neglected during youth programmes by establishing for them a platform to channel their passions and interests. Some of these groups are those labelled as "mat motor", buskers and skaters."We set up a motoring unit to attract the mat motor group. We provide for them a district level motoring event, exhibitions and even an "autoshow" competition. "There are five groups of buskers in Beaufort who do not have a place to channel their talents. Superb provides for them a chance to perform at the Beaufort Waterfront as well as at state level competitions," explained Halbi.He believed that such programmes prevented youths from becoming idle and prone to negative influences. The club's good rapport with parliamentary members has resulted in the construction of a futsal court in a rural neighbourhood in Tanjung Aru. A skatepark is also due for completion in May 2015. Halbi said the main challenge in recruiting new members was introducing the concept of volunteerism to a generation of youths who were accustomed to individualism. "From the beginning, many were only interested in what Superb can do for them. However, after explaining the importance of Superb, particularly in disaster relief missions, many agreed to join," he explained. He said youths from different villages had different expectations from the club, which eventually became a responsibility for those mobilising it. Another challenge was ensuring the welfare of the volunteers, some of whom came from the rural areas and needed aid according to the state of their localities. Superb would need to obtain financial allocation from its MP's office to support the transportation and meal costs of volunteers from such area.Halbi said the negative perception of certain quarters also posed a challenge to Superb's missions. There were those who assumed that Superb operated under the political ideology of the local MP. This has caused resistance towards the implementation of programmes, he said. Halbi maintained that Superb was an independent club, free from political influences. "It may have been the brainchild of a parliamentarian but it is independent in its implementation. We are an independent volunteer squad that sincerely wants to contribute to the community. "Negative opinions will not break our spirit. The projects will go on".Superb member, Norhan Ahmat, said the Beaufort youths have been active for some time, but many were inclined to pursue their own interests and causes. This has prevented them from working in solidarity, despite the many of youth programmes implemented. "With Superb, we can coordinate the programmes in a more comprehensive manner. Many of the youths who were previously working independently have joined Superb following the membership drive," said the 23-year-old, who had been active since 2009. He said programmes like "gotong-royong", repairing old folks' homes and visiting the poor and disabled have become more appealing to youths today. This was a very positive change when compared to youth involvement in community activities, five years ago, he noted. Meanwhile, Sabah Youth Parliamentary Member Norlizawati Matsam, 28, said youths needed a platform like Superb to manifest their needs in a positive manner. "They are the future leaders. When they take the effort to get to know the community at a deeper level, they will become wiser to the issues and come up with more creative solutions for it," she said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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