AFTER MEETING VINCENT TAN, TURKEY’S ERDOGAN AGREES TO PROVIDE LAND FOR REFUGEE SCHOOL FOR SYRIANS

ISTANBUL – Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun scored a huge milestone in his bid to assist Syrian refugees in Turkey after a fruitful meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday.

Speaking to the press after visiting the president, the Berjaya Corp Bhd founder and executive chairman revealed that Erdogan has agreed to provide a piece of land to the Tzu Chi Foundation — of which Tan is a volunteer himself — for the purpose of building a new school for the refugees.

In addition, the president also agreed to provide Advanced Continuing Education (ACE) certificates to up to 3,000 refugee students each year, up from the current 531 quota, which will allow their examination results to be recognised in other countries when furthering their studies.

Currently, some 3,000 Syrian children are seeking education from the El Menahil International School, which is deemed to be overpopulated by the Turkish government.

Tan, who was ostensibly joyous and cheerful during the press conference, described the hour-long meeting with Erdogan as “very positive”, and that the latter was extremely supportive of Tzu Chi’s plans and works.

“We came here to help Tzu Chi in their bid to assist the refugees, and I think we have achieved much more than we initially expected, especially after we managed to get a courtesy call with the president.

“Because we understand they (Tzu Chi) do not have access or direct contact with the government. So, I used whatever contacts I have to meet Erdogan,” he said, here, last night.

Tan added that he was also looking at possibly investing in the tourism sector in Istanbul, and was considering developing a hotel here.

The meeting yesterday was also attended by, among others, the Turkish Ambassador to Malaysia Merve Kavakci, Top Glove Corporation Bhd executive chairman Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai, Tan’s son and chief operating officer of Berjaya Times Square Morvin Tan, and Faisal Hu and wife Nadia Chou, a couple who leads Tzu Chi’s Istanbul chapter.

Faisal said Erdogan has agreed to arrange further meetings between his office and Tzu Chi on the proposal to allocate a land for the new school and the plan to register the students under ACE.

He said while the move to build a new school would take some time before it was completed, it was a “dream come true” for Tzu Chi and the students in particular.

The current school (El Menahil International School) was set up by the Sultangazi government, Syrian teachers and Tzu Chi in 2015 and provides classes for all levels of primary, elementary and secondary.

Separately, Lim said Erdogan would consider allowing Top Glove, the world’s largest rubber gloves manufacturers, to build a glove factory in Turkey, that would subsequently provide job opportunities to between 500 and 1,000 individuals.

“We even suggested that maybe a portion of this job openings be provided to the Syrian refugees. And he is very receptive of this proposal,” he said.

Tan and Lim are currently on a special three-day mission to Syria, along with 25 Malaysian Tzu Chi volunteers, to provide financial assistance and other aids to the refugees here.

Vincent Tan wants more M’sians to reach out to Syrian refugees

ISTANBUL: Berjaya Corp Bhd founder and executive chairman Tan Sri Vincent Tan Chee Yioun has a message to Malaysian charity and aid groups — provide more assistance to Syrian refugees fleeing the war-torn country.

His call came after his visit yesterday, together with his family and Malaysian volunteers from the Tzu Chi Foundation, to several homes of Syrian refugee families in Istanbul and the El Menahil International School for the children.

“These (assistance) are little things we do that can actually help their (refugees) spirit. Many NGOs in Malaysia can actually come here and do the same, regardless of their faith and religion.

“There are many wealthy people in Malaysia. They can surely help. I hope what we are doing here can motivate and inspire others to do the same,” he told a press conference, here, last night (Saturday local time).

Tan, who is an accredited volunteer of Tzu Chi himself, was among 25 Malaysian volunteers to make their way to Istanbul, Turkey to help in relief works and distribute various forms of aid to the refugees in a special three-day mission here.

The business magnate, who flew in on Friday morning with the volunteers, was also joined yesterday by family members.

They spent yesterday morning visiting several refugee families around the city, giving out goodies such as cash aids and food, and hearing their plights and experiences facing the war in Syria.

One such family, that of Ibrahim Al-Hamoud, 45, shared with Tan how his family of 11 was managing living in a flat that is barely 500 sq ft, and how his son-in-law and granddaughter are forced to live with tuberculoses (TB) as they could barely afford medical treatment.

Ibrahim also shared how he lost his hearing in one of his ears and lost all his toes during the war.

Tan said the visit to Istanbul provided him and his family a good insight on the life of the Syrian refugees, describing it as an eye-opener.

“It was a really good experience for us to come and see the families for ourselves, how they are living in cramped spaces and understand their plights.

“My children are also now able to understand better the suffering and distress felt by these families as a result of the internal conflict in their country,” he said.

Tan and his family, together with the volunteers, later visited the El Menahil International School — which was set up by the Sultangazi government, Syrian teachers and Tzu Chi in 2015 — to meet with the refugee children there.

The school now hosts some 3,000 students from as young as six years old, with classes for all levels of primary, elementary and secondary.

Tzu Chi also donated cash aids to students from the poor families, as part of their monthly assistance programme.

On Friday, Tan had donated 2,000 school bags to the students, with the other Malaysian volunteers also presenting various forms of donations, including cupcakes and chocolates.

Top Glove Corporation Berhad founder Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai, who is also part of Tzu Chi Malaysia’s aid mission, meanwhile donated rubber gloves to a free clinic, also set up by Tzu Chi.

Turkey currently has some four million Syrian refugees seeking shelter in the country following the war that broke out about seven years ago, with 700,000 of them in Istanbul alone.

– http://bit.ly/2VjWyC4

✍ Sumber Pautan : ☕ Malaysians Must Know the TRUTH

Kredit kepada pemilik laman asal dan sekira berminat untuk meneruskan bacaan sila klik link atau copy paste ke web server : http://bit.ly/2QaSKj0

(✿◠‿◠)✌ Mukah Pages : Pautan Viral Media Sensasi Tanpa Henti. Memuat-naik beraneka jenis artikel menarik setiap detik tanpa henti dari pelbagai sumber. Selamat membaca dan jangan lupa untuk 👍 Like & 💕 Share di media sosial anda!