A Lenasia-based emergency services organisation whose first responder activities had been severely impeded by the recent loss of a vehicle, is back on track following the donation of a brand new R840 000 critical response vehicle by the South African Muslim Charitable Trust (SAMCT).
The Saaberie Chishty Emergency Response Team, established in 2022 as a division of the Saaberie Chishty Emergency Medical Services, lost a vehicle to an accident, cutting deeply into its service capabilities, restricting its ability to respond to emergencies and risking the trust of the less fortunate communities it serves in the southern suburbs of Johannesburg, Lenasia and surrounds.
Originally initiated as a small community ambulance, the umbrella body today offers a 24-hour fully operational ambulance service and, in 2022, grew the organisation with the launch of the rescue services component. Since inception, the offering has grown exponentially, now affording emergency medical service to such areas as Eldorado Park, Lehae, Zakkariyya Park, Lenasia South and Ennerdale, as well as neighbouring informal settlements.
Commenting on its vehicle donation, SAMCT representative, Mr Gaff Osman, said: “Communities in these areas are hugely reliant on the services offered and securing of a new replacement response vehicle was, therefore, essential for the continuance and expansion of the organisation’s vital community services. Upon learning about the unfortunate loss of one of its most critical vehicles – which significantly reduced its ability to provide a comprehensive service – the SAMCT immediately stepped in, financing a new primary response vehicle, thus restoring the organisation to full capacity and enabling it to again walk the front line of fire and rescue on behalf of the community.”
The SAMCT was created in 2008, the result of a partnership between Old Mutual Unit Trusts and Al Baraka Bank, for the creation, marketing and distribution of a suite of Shariah Funds. The organisation provides funding, services and other resources to improve the lives of the vulnerable, deprived and disadvantaged. It has successfully delivered sizeable assistance solutions throughout South Africa – irrespective of race or religion – and continues to work to support needy organisations in the fields of healthcare, social development, poverty alleviation and education.
The organisation has long served as a pivotal conduit for the channelling of funding, vital services, and resources to approved public benefit organisations, and remains committed to catalysing positive change and creating a lasting impact on the development and upliftment of, especially, disadvantaged individuals and communities. Its funds are distributed to help improve the health and development of deserving people and organisations, irrespective of race or religion.
The organisation is acclaimed for its transformative role, directing substantial donations towards multi-faceted initiatives, spanning education, poverty alleviation, empowerment, community upliftment, and sustainability programmes in its quest to foster social equity and ensure the well-being of the needy.
Mr Osman added: “The loss of a crucial vehicle by a community-based emergency services organisation is devastating and could have had tragic consequences with regard to its effective response to emergencies going forward. We are, therefore, proud to have been able to partner with
The Saaberie Chishty Emergency Response Team, bringing its fleet up to full strength with the provision of an invaluable resource. This is an organisation of volunteers which provides a bridge of hope and assistance for the communities it exists to serve and, I believe, will go from strength to strength now that it is able to once again operate optimally.”
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For more information about the SAMCT, please contact:
Rasheeda Motala
Social Responsibility Executive
Tel: 084 506 2280,
Email: samct@samct.co.za,
www.samct.co.za