Anwar sampaikan keresahan keluarga mangsa masih hilang kepada PM Nepal

Perdana Menteri Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, conveyed the anxiety and hope to Nepal's Prime Minister, Balendra Shah, over phone on Monday, regarding 55 Malaysian nationals still missing following a devastating flood disaster in Nepal last month. In a Facebook post, Anwar stated that Shah had guaranteed the ongoing search efforts despite the challenging circumstances due to the scale of the disaster and the extensive destruction likened to a tsunami.

"I hope all possible efforts will yield results and provide the much-awaited certainty, especially for the families of all 55 Malaysian nationals who have not been found," Anwar said via a Facebook message on Monday. Anwar spoke after a telephone call with a colleague from Nepal earlier before departing for China in the morning.

In the call, Anwar also acknowledged the appreciation to the Nepalese government, authorities, and rescue teams who have been working tirelessly in the disaster relief operation, including the Malaysian missing persons. He further stated that he is contemplating a formal mechanism if the missing persons are not found and the search process fails to provide certainty.

"This step is crucial to assist the affected families in managing legal, financial, and administrative matters. I will send a formal letter to the Prime Minister of Nepal to outline the contingency plans," Anwar said. According to international media reports, the death toll from the disaster on August 26 in the Nepal-China border region has risen to over 1,450, with over 6,000 still missing in both countries.

Anwar flew to China for a three-day working visit starting Monday on an invite from the Chinese government.