Even well-off people are calling social support groups

ISTANBUL- Demirören News Agency

Even some well-off people call help lines to seek support from the authorities amid the coronavirus outbreak, said Bilal Yıldız, the head of the social solidarity foundation operating in the Avcılar district, adding that those people’s requests are tantamount to the abuse of the system.

VEFA social support group was launched in the wake of the pandemic to provide basic needs to people who are aged over 65 and those with underlying health conditions. Also, several helplines also collect requests from the needy.

“We are receiving some very troubling calls from people, who have at least ten cars, duplex luxury homes and people who own summer houses. They keep calling us to learn if their help request is processed. They are trying to abuse the system,” said Yıldız, who is the head of the social assistance and solidarity foundation of Avcılar, which cooperates with VEFA.

“We are even ashamed to respond to their questions. We will not allow them to block the system,” he added.

According to Yılmaz, sometimes four different people from the same family apply for support.

Since March 26, all requests made to different help lines have been directed to Vefa Social Support Groups, operating in Istanbul’s 39 districts.

In the Avcılar district, officials from the local mufti’s office, the local directorate of education and the police force are responding to help requests.

The officials in the district have distributed 48 packages of drugs and more than 250 packages of food over the past month. They have also met more than 1,800 requests from people who provided them with a shopping list.