THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The online crowdfunding for poor patients has deteriorated to the level of mafia, Mohammed Asheel, executive director of Kerala Social Security Mission (KSSM) said in a video post. Asheel said there were a lot of online crowdfunding agencies and individuals operating in the state and these agencies and individuals were collecting funds without any registration or auditing by the state government agencies.
The post comes in the wake of the controversy over self-styled social worker Firoz Kunnamparambil that grabbed headlines for an online spat that later led to questions on the genuineness of his activities. Asheel said there were a host of genuine and transparent agencies like Milap in the state which have made it clear that 20 per cent of the fund collected through crowdfunding would be used to run the agency and the remaining would be to help poor patients.
He said that their activities including accounts are subjected to auditing. Individuals like Firoz operates without any accountability and many of his activities not only violate the existing norms, but are also fraudulent, he said. Firoz collects huge sum of money by publicising videos highlighting the plight of poor patients through online platforms. Further, there is no foreign currency registration for the bank accounts operational for these purposes. He said the state government is aware that they spend only a small amount of money for the benefit of these poor patients, and the rest of the money is diverted for other purposes.
He said while sad stories of poor patients, who are unable to afford the rising costs of life-saving treatment, often strike a chord with the philanthropists, it is a fact that it has become a lucrative employment for many.
ONLINE SPAT
Firoz, on Wednesday, issued a public apology to the woman he had insulted for questioning him. He rubbished the allegations of social security mission executive director through another video and challenged Asheel to prove the allegation levelled against him