I refer to the article “NKF must be ‘pace-setter’ in good governance, transparency” (ST, July 22), and I have a few suggestions to make.

In recent years, there have been some charity-related serials and fund-raising shows. Personally, I have always wondered whether these local and foreign celebrities are paid for their performance. I am very impressed that they are doing so much for charity, sometimes even putting their own lives at risks and getting injured in the process.

In the spirit of setting the pace for transparency and accountability, I propose that the NKF publicise the amount paid out to MediaCorp and/or other related parties. Assuming the maximum of 30% of the funds raised are used in expenses, including paying the fund-raisers, it means that NKF only received $7 million from the recent NKF fund-raising show which raised around 10 million over 2 weekends.

Also, I would also like to revisit the matter of SingTel collecting $0.21 per call. The NKF Charity Show 2004 had a record 3.2 million calls, i.e. $672000, all charged directly to the callers. If these were to be included as expenses, would the full appeal expenses thus exceeded the 30% allowable by law, even though this amount isn’t actually payout by NKF directly?

Furthermore, with the frequency of the charity shows on television, the amount of revenue at $0.21 per call would be quite substantial. As many low income people are donating their hard-earned money, such costs and charges should be made known for their benefit. This should be done so that the public are made aware of all these surcharges, which will go forward to assist them in evaluating if they can more effectively contribute to the beneficiaries via the other means available.

Interestingly, I saw on television the other day that “All proceeds from the telepoll campaign will go directly to the beneficiaries”, something not seen before in other fund-raising shows. However, it would be best if someone can actually tell us if “proceeds” mean gross proceeds or net proceeds.

The figures I have stated above are estimates from the figures I have gathered on the mass media. These figure might be inaccurate and they are not meant to scruntinise any particular organization or individual or to portray them in a bad light. My main intention is simply to allow the public to be better-informed in the future so that Singapore will become a better place for charities, fund-raisers, beneficiaries and donors alike.

MP Halimah Yacob’s speech printed on Page H9 of the Straits Times on 21st July 2005 was a wake-up call for me, particularly the following two paragraphs.

How many of us must have felt somewhat uncomfortable with the glitz and gloss associated with the NKF fund-raising efforts, including the television shows?

We must have wondered and asked ourselves many questions but never took the trouble to seriously articulate them.

I am one of those who has been uncomfortable with the fund-raising serials and variety shows for years and I would like to take this opportunity to articulate them now and have some of my questions and doubts clarified.

In recent years, the charity-related serials and fund-raising shows have almost become a regular feature on television and that has bothered me quite a bit. Some of the people I talk to think that the local and foreign celebrities perform for free and have been very impressed that the celebrities are doing so much for charity. Some even think the foreign celebrities flew in on their own expense.

I do not know whether they perform for free or for fees, or who pays for the costs of bringing in foreign celebrities, but I doubt that MediaCorp would absorb the costs, given the frequency of the fund-raising shows. Apart from the time the crew and celebrities would need to sacrifice to prepare for the fund-raising shows, MediaCorp would also need to sacrifice potential advertisement earnings during the times the shows were shown, not to mention the amount of money that would have to be spent producing and advertising for the shows.

In the spirit of seeking transparency and accountability for the good of the public, I hope either NKF or MediaCorp would clarify how much of our donations actually go to NKF and how much go to MediaCorp and/or other related parties. From what I know, the law allows for up to 30% of funds raised to be used for appeal expenses, including paying the fund-raisers. Taking the recent NKF fund-raising show as an example, approximately $10 million was raised over 2 weekends. If 30% was used to pay fund-raising partners like MediaCorp, it means that NKF only received $7 million, and if NMP Steve Chia’s figures were right, only about $700000 actually went to help the patients.

I am aware that MediaCorp is a private limited company and is thus not legally bound to reveal any figures to the public, but because they appealed to our compassion and took money from the public who thought their money would go to NKF and the patients, it becomes a moral and ethical issue that must be worked out.

Interestingly, I just found out that Mr. Ernest Wong, Group CEO of MediaCorp, has just been appointed to the board of directors in NKF. I hope it means that the commercial relationship between NKF and MediaCorp will become clearer to the public and the synergy will lead to greater efficiency.

I am also particularly concerned with SingTel collecting $0.21 for every call that was made. The 2004 NKF Charity Show had a record 3.2 million calls for that show alone. That means that in one show alone, it earned $672000, more than the peanuts that Mr. Durai earns in a year, and slightly less than the $700000-odd that directly benefited the patients. What is more interesting is that this amount was charged directly to the callers, and hence need not be accounted for. If it were to be included as expenses, it would have accounted for almost 7% and for all we know, the appeal expenses may have exceeded the 30% allowable by law.

Furthermore, with the frequency of the charity shows on television, we can safely assume that SingTel has collected at least a few million just by charging $0.21 per call. SingTel and MediaCorp are businesses and have operating costs as well as shareholders to answer to, so I do no think it is wrong to charge. However, as it is a charity effort in which many people with low income are donating their hard-earned money, I believe there is a need for such costs and charges to be made known. It would also be good for these companies to lead the way in giving to the charities as well.

This is not to say that MediaCorp and SingTel are not doing anything. I know for a fact that SingTel does waive its charges for certain fund-raising events and activities, like the President’s Charity Show and the tsunami rescue effort. Incidentally, I just saw on television that “All proceeds from the telepoll campaign will go directly to the beneficiaries”, something we have not seen in other fund-raising shows, and I think this is a good move by MediaCorp. Anyway, since we are in the wondering mode, I wonder what “proceeds” really mean. Does it mean gross proceeds or net proceeds?

At the end of the day, if fund-raising shows means that less of the donations are going directly to the beneficiaries, the giving public should donate via other means like giving through GIRO or sending cheques which would not incur such high expenses. However, if the relevant parties can work together to raise more money while keeping the costs low, I am sure fund-raising shows will still prove to be an effective fund-raising channel.

In closing, I need to state that I am not writing to slander any individual or organization but to raise questions and provoke more questioning so that ultimately, we will all become better-informed and Singapore will become a better place for charities, fund-raisers, beneficiaries and the public alike.