Listeners tune in to appeal
STEPHEN FORBES
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THE team at Henderson's Radio Apna is standing proud after raising more than $270,000 in an on-air appeal for the Pakistani flood relief.
Station manager and host Shaiyaz Mohammed spent over 30 hours on air as part of the fundraising drive.
"We were surprised by the amount people pledged," Mr Mohammed says.
He says the Hindi station thought it would raise about $120,000 during the 30-hour fundraiser.
"But we didn't expect to get over $270,000."
He says the station is still in talks with the Pakistani High Commission and will decide in the next few days which charity it will pay the money to.
But for now he's trying to catch up on some sleep.
Pakistan Association of New Zealand president Mohammad Tauqir Khan says it's a great result.
"From the association I'd like to congratulate Radio Apna from the bottom of my heart," he says.
"The people in Pakistan are in dire need of medicine, water and food. So we are very grateful to the people at Radio Apna."
The floods, which hit Pakistan in late July, have affected more than 17 million people according to the United Nations. The devastation covers an area of more than 16,000 square kilometres.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates 700,000 Pakistanis have been forced into makeshift settlements in the southern province of Sindh. And 1.2 million homes across the country have been damaged or destroyed.
There are concerns the fragile situation in Pakistan could lead to social unrest and political instability.
The New Zealand government will provide $4 million for the relief effort.
- © Fairfax NZ News
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