Questions raised over fundraiser for boy orphaned by Tampines crash, even as donations surpass $428,000

What started as a fundraising appeal for the orphaned son of the couple killed in the Tampines Ave 12 crash, soon found itself under scrutiny after online users questioned the legitimacy of the drive.

The allegations prompted its organiser to publicly defend the appeal.

As of Monday (Nov 2), donations for the fundraiser had exceeded $428,000.

The fundraiser was started by a relative of one of the deceased victims following the fatal Tampines crash.

The Tampines Ave 12 multi-vehicle accident on Thursday (Oct 29) killed the 24-year-old rider and his wife, who was also 24. The couple were reportedly expecting their second child.

News of the plight of their first child, now orphaned, spread online, with many netizens asking how they could contribute to or donate to the grieving family.

Online user "sgfirecouple" shared how the fundraising organiser had originally responded to his story, saying she was heartened by the amount of support the family was receiving online.

The organiser subsequently shared an Instagram story (IGS) of herself and a boy, allegedly the deceased couple's son, along with a Paynow QR code, inviting interested netizens to make a contribution.

She also said that while donations were being sent to her personal bank account, she was working with the family to open a bank account for the couple's son.

Questions over the fundraiser's legitimacy surfaced over the weekend when a Facebook user claimed she did not know who the fundraising organiser was.

Her caption read, "Stop sharing the donation and do not scan the PayNow. We don't know this person."

Around the same time, the fundraising organiser created a Give.Asia fundraising page and began sharing it, along with a picture of the deceased couple and their son.

In her new post, she said that she had to censor the little boy's face due to a gag order.

The fundraising organiser subsequently addressed the concerns in a series of Instagram Stories.

According to her, the original PayNow QR code was shared after family members, friends and followers asked how they could contribute.

As interest in the case grew, she decided to move the fundraising effort to Give.Asia.

The organiser, via her IGS, said that all donations which had originally come through via the Paynow were properly recorded "to ensure complete transparency", and that the Paynow QR code has since expired.

She added that the funds received would be used solely for the child's education, medical expenses and other needs.

According to the organiser, she has also clarified any misunderstandings regarding the fundraising with relevant parties.

Setting up fundraisers in Singapore

In her IGS, the organiser said that setting up a fundraiser in Singapore was not easy and that there were documentation steps and verification steps involved, attempting to further-prove her legitimacy.

Since social issues began garnering attention online, more Singaporeans have been turning to virtual fundraising platforms to set up fundraisers.

However, when setting up a fundraiser, the organiser is usually required to submit documentation before a campaign is approved - documentation can be in the form of a hospital letter, hospital bills, invoices or legal letters.

Platforms like give.asia require fundraisers to submit all relevant documentation before granting approval for the fundraiser to be published.

Other platforms such as giving.sg conduct relevant checks before approving a campaign to be published on their site.

The fundraiser involving the Tampines fatal crash, "Help an orphan: A community coming together for his future", has since received over $428,000 in donations from more than 11,000 donors.

swetha.sundararajan@asiaone.com

最初是为了帮助在淡滨尼 12 道车祸中丧生的夫妇的孤儿而发起的募捐活动，在网络用户质疑该活动的合法性后，很快就受到了审查。

这些指控促使活动组织者公开为此次上诉进行辩护。

截至周一（11月2日），该筹款活动的捐款已超过42.8万美元。

这场筹款活动是由一名遇难者家属在淡滨尼致命车祸后发起的。

10月29日（星期四），淡滨尼12道发生多车相撞事故，造成一名24岁的骑车男子和他的妻子（也是24岁）死亡。据报道，这对夫妇当时正怀着他们的第二个孩子。

他们的第一个孩子成了孤儿，他的困境的消息在网上迅速传播开来，许多网友询问如何才能帮助或捐助这个悲痛的家庭。

网友“sgfirecouple”分享了筹款组织者最初是如何回应他的故事的，她说她对这个家庭在网上获得的支持之多感到鼓舞。

随后，组织者在 Instagram 快拍 (IGS) 上分享了一张自己和一个男孩（据称是这对已故夫妇的儿子）的照片，以及一个 Paynow 二维码，邀请感兴趣的网友捐款。

她还表示，虽然捐款会汇到她的个人银行账户，但她正在与这家人合作，为这对夫妇的儿子开设一个银行账户。

周末期间，一位 Facebook 用户声称她不知道筹款活动的组织者是谁，这引发了人们对该筹款活动合法性的质疑。

她的配文写道：“请停止转发捐款信息，也不要扫描PayNow付款链接。我们不认识这个人。”

大约在同一时间，筹款组织者创建了一个 Give.Asia 筹款页面，并开始分享该页面，同时还分享了这对已故夫妇及其儿子的照片。

她在新发布的帖子中表示，由于禁言令，她不得不遮盖小男孩的脸部。

随后，筹款活动组织者在一系列 Instagram 快拍中回应了这些疑虑。

据她所说，最初的 PayNow 二维码是在家人、朋友和粉丝询问如何捐款后分享的。

随着人们对这起案件的关注度越来越高，她决定将筹款活动转移到 Give.Asia 平台。

组织者通过她的IGS表示，所有最初通过Paynow收到的捐款都已妥善记录，“以确保完全透明”，并且Paynow二维码现已过期。

她补充说，收到的款项将全部用于孩子的教育、医疗费用和其他需求。

据组织者称，她还与相关各方澄清了有关筹款活动的任何误解。

在新加坡设立筹款活动

组织者在她的IGS中表示，在新加坡发起筹款活动并不容易，需要经过文件准备和验证等步骤，以进一步证明其合法性。

自从社会问题开始在网上引起关注以来，越来越多的新加坡人开始利用虚拟筹款平台发起筹款活动。

但是，在发起筹款活动时，组织者通常需要提交文件，然后活动才能获得批准——文件可以是医院信函、医院账单、发票或法律信函。

像 give.asia 这样的平台要求筹款者提交所有相关文件，然后才能批准发布筹款活动。

其他平台，例如giving.sg，在批准一项活动在其网站上发布之前，会进行相关的审核。

为纪念淡滨尼致命车祸而发起的筹款活动“帮助孤儿：社区携手共创未来”已收到来自 11,000 多名捐赠者的超过 428,000 美元捐款。

swetha.sundararajan@asiaone.com