Pledge it forward with your income tax rebate
Trio set up charity initiative for people to donate part of their personal income tax rebate to 51 pre-selected charities
When the 20 per cent personal income tax rebate for taxpayers, capped at $500, was announced in the Singapore Budget 2017, it inspired three friends to create a charity initiative.
Miss Rebekah Lin and Ms Cheryl Chong, both 31, co-founders of The Social Co, a group which aims to solve social issues in Singapore, and Mr Nadim van der Ros, 40, founder of Be An Idea, a strategic marketing consultancy, teamed up to create Pledge It Forward.
Launched yesterday, it is an initiative that enables individuals to pledge any amount of their personal income tax rebate towards their group of 51 pre-selected charities.
The funds raised will be disbursed equally by the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) to the 51 beneficiaries.
Miss Lin said: "We want to support these charities in their efforts to serve the needs of these vulnerable groups as we seek to build a stronger and more inclusive community in Singapore."
All the 51 are registered as member organisations under NCSS and have an Institution of a Public Character status.
Organisations such as the Samaritans of Singapore (SOS), Singapore National Stroke Association and the Association for Persons with Special Needs (APSN), are beneficiaries of the initiative.
They hope to reach 10,000 pledges by the end of the campaign on Dec 31.
As of yesterday, there were 400 pledges and more than $5,000 was raised on giving.sg and Give.Asia.
Mr van der Ros said: "We are excited to see how our combined resources as a country will make a real difference to shaping an inclusive, supportive and strong future for all of us."
Mr Ang Kian Peng, 39, director of Samsui Supplies and Services, pledged $500.
He told The New Paper: "The initiative supports 51 charities, which is easier for us because they've done all the due diligence (to research the charities) for us."
Executive director of SOS Christine Wong said they are grateful to be on board.
She told TNP: "This serves as an encouragement for SOS to continue serving our clients to the best of our ability and support of our upstream work to meaningfully engage the community through outreach efforts in suicide prevention."
Mr Victor Tay, president of APSN, a non-profit organisation, said: "We will use the funds to help special needs individuals build capabilities to secure a dignified job so they can be autonomous."
To make a donation, visit www.pledgeitforward.sg
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