K
Kanetsugu Naoe
Guest
Wednesday November 24, 2010
Beware of singing female beggars, public advised
By FARIK ZOLKEPLI
[email protected]
JOHOR BARU: foreign beggars in the city are using a new tactic to collect donations – by serenading the people first. The women, equipped with a guitar, would go to food outlets and mamak stalls, hoping to win favours with their singing skills.
Often travelling in groups of three, the women would sing songs from foreign countries such as the Philippines as well as golden oldies. So far, they have been spotted at a food outlet in Taman Pelangi. They would sing for about five minutes and then take out a “donation booklet” in aid of welfare homes in their home country.
Johor Welfare Department director Nik Omar Nik Abdul Rahman said the women were part of a syndicate trying to earn easy money from kind Malaysians. “Singing beggars are definitely a new tactic used by the syndicate,” he told The Star yesterday.
Nik Omar advised people not to be conned by these foreign women. “Our personnel will be deployed in the city to catch them as soon as possible,” he added. “These foreigners are earning big bucks. We once caught a 60-year-old man from China who earned thousands of ringgit monthly and even stayed in a hotel,” he said.
Nik Omar said most foreign beggars entered the country on social visitors’ passes. He advised the public not to give money to beggars, whether local or foreign. “The more people give, the more beggars will continue with their chosen profession,” he said.
