KANGAR: A woman has earned the wrath of Netizens for uploading a Facebook post complaining of being served canned sardines and rice for lunch at a relief centre here.
The woman, who claimed to be one of the evacuees at SK Bintong, had shared on Facebook, her unhappiness over the meal yesterday.
In the posting, she wrote: "Ini adalah makanan untuk mangsa banjir, taugeh dan sardin untuk hari ni. #sedih sangat. Apa reaksi anda? (This is food for flood victims, bean sprouts with sardine for today. very #sad. What say you?"
Attached with the post was a picture of packed rice with canned sardine and bean sprouts, which she shared to a Perlis Facebook page.
However, instead of garnering sympathy from Netizens, the woman was heavily criticised. The public took a dig at her for being ungrateful.
Her posting had also attracted criticisms from flood victims in other states including evacuees of one of the worst floods in Johor, a decade ago.
Checks showed that the woman has since deactivated her Facebook account.
Meanwhile, Perlis Welfare Department has clarified that the menu was a last-minute addition, following the sudden surge of flood evacuees in the state.
Its director Mohammad Hazam Ismail explained that the department had prepared 2,500 packs of rice served with fish curry for lunch yesterday, based on the initial number of flood victims in the state.
However, he said the meal prepared turned out to be insufficient following a surge of flood victims at noon yesterday.
"The department prepared food for 2,500 to be distributed to registered evacuees at flood relief centres in the state, but there was a hike in the number of victims at noon yesterday.
"Due to time constraint, the staff in-charge of preparing the food was left with no choice but to purchase the canned sardines, to ensure all evacuees get their lunch.
"Only 20 per cent of the evacuees were served rice with canned sardines while the rest had been served with the initial menu of 'gulai ikan ketul'.
"For dinner yesterday, they were served rice with chicken. We are trying to provide the best possible meals to the flood victims," he said when contacted.
Disappointed with the posting, he described the action as uncalled for.
"When she posted such status, not only those in Perlis but also people from other states and even from other countries can also read it," he said.
He added that on the first day the state was hit by flood on Thursday, the department served fried noodles for breakfast but based on a request by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azlan Man, they have changed the menu to nasi lemak on the following day.
Hazam advised the public to seek verification with relevant authorities before making such irresponsible posting.
Following the criticisms, the woman, known as Azizah Abdullah, has issued an open apology on the Saya Anak Perlis Facebook page.
In the posting, Azizah said she regretted sharing the post.
She stated it was a misunderstanding on her part and that she was thankful for the honest feedback.
"This has served as a lesson to me.
"I wish to extend my apology to all those on the SAP (Saya Anak Perlis) page and all volunteers at the flood relief centres," she said.
Azizah stated that she is only human and thus, prone to making mistakes but added that she will be more careful with her postings in the future.