Firm to support World Thalassaemia Day celebrations
KOTA KINABALU: Repsol Oil and Gas Malaysia Limited has been sponsoring the Sabah Thalassaemia Society’s World Thalassaemia Day celebrations in Sabah.
The company will go one step further in supporting the awareness campaigns on Thalassaemia disease by joining forces at the national level of the celebration scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur in September this year.
Repsol Malaysia’senior manager for stakeholder relations, Ahmad Fakrurrazi Arshad, announced this at the World Thalassaemia Day celebrations for the north western districts last Saturday.
Ahmad stated that Repsol ‘s involvement and sponsorship in the Thalassaemia Day awareness programmes began in 2014 after finding out that Sabah had the highest number of Thalassaemia major patients in the country.
“Our sponsorship is to provide a platform for officials and volunteers from the Health Department and Sabah Thalassaemia Society to spread awareness messages and information on this blood related disease,” Ahmad added.
He said that Repsol would continue to support programmes involving the Thalassaemic community in Sabah and would work together in achieving the State’s target towards “Zero Thalassaemia Major Case by 2030’.
Repsol also donated three TV sets, three water dispensers, an airconditioner, lockers and carrom boards to the Thalassaemia wards at Kota Belud Hospital in conjunction with the celebrations in Kota Belud last Saturday.
Deputy Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change and Environment Minister Isnaraissah Munirah binti Majilis, who is the Kota Belud member of parliament, officiated at the celebrations and flagged off some 200 participants of the Walk for Thalassaemia.
Speaking at the ceremony, Isnaraissah Munirah stated that the objectives of the annual World Thalassaemia Day were to promote and increase the awareness about Thalassaemia among the community, motivate the public to donate blood to support thalassaemic patients who are in constant need of blood transfusions and bring the community together in the fight against the Thalassaemia in order to make the country free of the disease.
Sabah Thalassaemia Society president Francis Mujim said he was overwhelmed by the support by the community in Kota Belud as well as the huge participation by the respective district Thalassaemia branches in Kota Belud, Kota Marudu, Matunggong, Kudat, Pitas, Ranau, Keningau, Papar and Kota Kinabalu.
Francis called on the Thalassaemic patients to emulate the more successful fellow patients in the big fight again their disease and to continue living in compliance with what they needed to remain healthy and lead a meaningful life.
A blood donation drive held simultaneously netted 89 pints.
As part of reaching out to the younger segment of the community, some 40 secondary students from several schools around Kota Belud were invited to the celebration.