In recent days, a storm of controversy has surrounded a well-known influencer couple celebrated for their Islamic content.
Their fame took a tumultuous turn when they were apprehended by authorities on charges of misusing their influence and mishandling substantial sums of online donation money.
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The couple stands accused of diverting donations, which reportedly amounted to millions of ringgit, originally intended for charitable causes.
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M’sian influencer couple allegedly misused charity donations & took 20% in commission
According to reports, the funds were solicited through the JomDonate platform, a popular avenue for online fundraising in Malaysia. Shockingly, it is alleged that a significant portion of these donations never reached their intended beneficiaries.
The controversy was brought to light by Instagram user @emirhaqim, who shared his experience of being approached to promote donation drives on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
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Through a series of Instagram story screenshots, he detailed the proposal he received.
“I don’t want anyone to donate to those who promote JomDonate anymore,” he stated firmly.
@emirhaqim highlighted several campaigns listed in the offer letter he received:
Ramadan dates charity
Iftar meal packages
Bubur Lambuk charity
Behind closed doors: Influencer tactics exposed
However, what alarmed him most was the financial arrangement for influencers. According to him, influencers were offered a 20% commission from the total donations they raised.
Many expressed disbelief at how easily influencers could profit from these donation drives, often without full transparency on where the funds ultimately went.
“Raise RM5,000 to get RM1,000. If you raise RM50,000? How much do influencers get? This is just one campaign,” he questioned.
“Every time a post was uploaded, influencers would get 20% commission from the total donation amount.”
He explained that the donation process was made to appear straightforward: influencers were to promote the donation link via short videos on IG or TikTok, with the donation platform provided by JomDonate.
Another raised a pertinent question: “So how much of the donation money should actually reach the people in need? If you subtract influencer money, staff expenses, campaign costs, and so on.”
Comparisons were also made to other charitable organisations.
“Similar to the Aman Palestine case, there’s a clause allowing a percentage of donated money, but that applies to organizations. This is an individual case. Let’s see how it turns out,” one user pointed out.
