Duo reach out to struggling families in the West

IF there was anyone who has firsthand knowledge and knows the real-life struggles that many Fijians are going through in the Western Division, it’s Allen Lockington.

The Lautoka philanthropist and his taxidriver have been moving around the West providing much-needed groceries and assistance to families in desperate need since the COVID-19 outbreak this year.

Mr Lockington said it was time the powers-that-be took into account the fact that families who were in dire need of assistance did not have access to mobile phones and the internet.

“Families who need assistance use other people’s phones to call us and when we arrange for food drop-off, they cannot be reached,” he said.

“Most of these needy families call from peri-urban areas or rural areas and it’s really sad that we are not able to get through to them.

“We have had to travel far to deliver a few times, only to reach the place and the families are not there, and it’s the donors’ money that we are using to get to them.”

Mr Lockington said some people called for assistance and gave the names of ten other families who also needed assistance.

He said while it was heartbreaking to know the level of need, they would not entertain such calls because they needed to be verified first before assistance could be provided.

The Waiyavi resident said they continued to receive 20 phone calls per day and numerous Facebook messages from people requesting assistance.

Mr Lockington, who works with Fijian donors local and abroad, has assisted more than 1500 Fijians ever since the pandemic hit a year ago.