'Volunteers', 'ex-offenders' selling keychains, soft toys not from Yellow Ribbon

SINGAPORE - You may have seen some suspicious people around touting keychains or soft toys, claiming they are reformed offenders or volunteers.

But these individuals are not part of the Yellow Ribbon Project, the initiative said in a Facebook post on Thursday (April 11).

In its post addressed to members of the public, it said that both the Project and the Yellow Ribbon Fund are not currently conducting any public fund-raising.

"We have not authorised any individuals or groups to do so in public on our behalf," it added.

Yellow Ribbon noted that charity organisations that are licensed to solicit funds in public would be granted a Collector's Certificate of Authority from the National Council of Social Services (NCSS) and a copy of the police permit.

To check if donation collectors are who they claim to be, you can scan the QR code on the permit.

You can also verify it with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth's Charities Unit, by text messaging "FR" followed by a space and the NCSS approval number to 79777.

If you encounter suspicious donation collectors, you can call the police at 999, Yellow Ribbon said.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.