Breaking News:
The Democratic Party of Japan has won a landslide victory in the country’s general elections, ousting the Liberal Democrats which had ruled the country for most of the last 54 years. (CBC News)
Leong Sze Hian
When the question was last asked in parliament as to the rejection rate for applications for the Public Assistance scheme, the answer was that about 50 per cent were rejected.
As there are only about 3,000 Singaporeans receiving public assistance, the question that needs to be raised is whether the criteria to qualify is too strict?
The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports’ (MCYS) website says:
“If you are unable to work owing to old age, illness or disability and have no means of subsistence and have little or no family support you may seek help under the PA scheme”.
Thus in Madam Chung’s case (featured in the video report above), where she appears to be able to “work”, she may not qualify for PA.
The tens of thousands of elderly toilet cleaners, food court cleaners, used drink cans and used cardboard collectors, etc, I believe may also fail to meet the PA scheme criteria.
If the elderly lady earns more than $12 a day, she may be actually better of being a rubbish scavenger, as recepients of the PA scheme are not allowed to work.
I also understand that if you own a flat, or have working children, it is also very difficult to qualify. Would you prefer to stay in your own home – instead of having to sell it and use up the proceeds, in order to get $360?
Medifund I understand cannot be used for polyclinic out-patient treatment. I spoke to a 81 year-old toilet cleaner who earns just $600 a month, and she told me that her biggest worry is that everytime she goes to a polyclinic about every three months, she has to pay about $98 for her three-months medicine and consultation.
As I understand it, the criteria to qualify for Medifund is confidential. As far as I am able to find out, the patient and family members must all have nothing in their Medisave, very little in their bank accounts, hardly any extra monthly disposable income, in order to get Medifund subsidy. Also, getting Medifund does not mean free, it may just be a subsidy for part of the medical cost.
I also understand that about 20 per cent of Medifund applications are rejected.
Members of parliament should know what are the rejection rates for Public Assistance, Financial Assistance and Medifund in their own constituencies. I suggest that these statistics be made public.
Compare Singapore to any developed country, and the number of only 3,000 public assistance recipients against the total citizen population, may be the lowest “welfare per capita” in the world.
To get the whole picture, perhaps what we need are the statistics. For example, according to the latest Department of Statistics data available, the bottom ten percentile of employed households have a per capita monthly income of only $360. What about unemployed households and retiree households? How many of the 116,600 unemployed as at June 2009 have zero or very low per capita income?
How many Singaporeans earn less than $800? The latest data say that 292,800 residents (Singaporeans and PRs) earn less than $1,200, and about 126,800 work part-time for a median income of $600 which has remain unchanged from 1999 to 2008.
———-
Godwin
“Pray tell what *must* in this case mean?”
that amounts to use of force?
“Whether you mean robbing them in the traditional fashion, or whether you mean taking the money from them to give to the poor legally by levying a tax, it is still force, for how is the law enforced if not by force?”
you have a rather skewed perceptions & biased choice of words. i not not endorse “robbing”. currently many people are forced by circumstances to accept a lower wage after retrenchment, not to mention how wages are artificially depressed for years. how the relentless influx of foreigners are muscling in on the job front.
oh, least i forget the term “market forces”, this must be another kind of force, no?
maybe in some ways, to you, those are subtle forms of robbery?
Nice attempt at shifting the goal posts, mice is nice.
We are talking about the Public Assistance system here, which is all about giving money to people who do not work.
Godwin,
post #102 on September 1st, 2009 6.18 pm
////And you still haven’t answered my simple question, mice is nice:
Where is the money you say should go towards “helping” the poor coming from?
Who are you going to get the money from?
How are you going to get the money from them?
What are you going to do if they refuse to give you that money to “help” the poor?////
so it boils down to this? harassing individuals to raise money to deal with social issues? maybe you ought to look deeper into how social problems came about.
my opinion that you are just conveniently trying to gloss social issues over to a macro level by pinning the responsibility on individuals.
you can start with Spore’s low birthrates.
Godwin
post #104 on September 1st, 2009 6.40 pm
////Nice attempt at shifting the goal posts, mice is nice.
We are talking about the Public Assistance system here, which is all about giving money to people who do not work.////
shift goal post? you are the one shifting a Public Assistant scheme to individual’s shoulders.
I don’t think we are engaging, mice is nice.
I have stated quite clearly what I think the so-called call for more “help” to the poor amounts to morally, whie you have not answered in what specific form your assertion that the rich “must” help the poor will be carried out.
Am I correct to say that it is your belief that the rich have an obligation to give money to the poor even if they do not wish to?
“you are the one shifting a Public Assistant scheme to individual’s shoulders.”
Huh?
Anyway, with more than a hundred comments I think it is time for me to stop.
I think I have stated my case clearly and consistently.
Sorry my posts appear so many times, I didn’t mean to.
Godwin
Not ALL the rich are crooked and not ALL the poor deserve the life they get.
How about shifting 5% of Ministers’ pay to use on people who cannot earn a decent living through no fault of their own?
Afterall the ministers pay are also robbed (by your definition taking from people without their agreement) from citizens.
Singapore needs a vibrant INFORMED discussion.
I think I am fortunate that I was born and raised in Singapore. I want to see it do well for decades to come. A reasonable person who looks at our place on the map and informs himself knows that our future success is never guaranteed. I think it is great that we have had a competent government at the right time in our history. It is largely due to their vision that Singapore has done well so far. They deserve a whole lot of credit since nation building is no easy task.
Yet, one hears all sorts of ridiculous baseless accusations against the government for just about anything and everything that has gone wrong.
While it is not unreasonable for one to say that we aim for an improving Singapore and that there should be a vibrancy of discussion amongst its people, on the flip-side of the coin, we should inform ourselves on the complexities of reality which occasionally, despite our leaders best efforts, manifest its dark side such as, in this case, the old or poor who are unable to receive help. Is it really a simple case of rich politicians who do not go the fullest extent to help these folks?
In the post-Lehmann economic environment, our government had put in place a few schemes that put a ceiling on the inevitable increase in the unemployment rate. It is part of my work and Bloomberg is my Siamese twin. I can honestly tell you that my heart was beaming with pride when on a few occasions there were Americans who would bring up our government’s schemes to tackle unemployment. They were basically impressed at the extent we went to do so and wondered in frustration why their own government seems to get caught up in ideology and could not come up with something like that.
So, let me repeat myself. Singapore does NOT need a vibrant discussion. It needs a vibrant INFORMED discussion.
“Am I correct to say that it is your belief that the rich have an obligation to give money to the poor even if they do not wish to?”
Just a thought experiment. Why not ? Of course, not in the direct sense of forcing the rich to give it to the poor ? But tweaking the whole taxation system (be it personal, corporate, property, erp, fines, etc) to give the poor a chance to a decent existence & minimum wage for work done.
What else can the higher powerful system do other than collection of taxes (direct or indirect) and rent-seeking and re-distributing it – which has been practiced by all societies and civilizations since time immemorial. Once the balance starts to get too lopsided (if you know what I mean), it just needs to get calibrated …………
# 71 Godwin /// Behold the ‘morality’ behind socialism ///
# 86 Godwin /// Bohold the hypocrisy of the socialist system ///
Hi Mr. Godwin,
You started your 2 lead articles [ #71 and #86 ] by deriding the ‘morality’ behind socialism and calling the socialist system hypocritical.
Lets see if this can enlighten you somewhat :–
The Morality behind Socialism
The economic organisation advocating state, worker or public ownership and administration of the means of production characterised by equal access to resources for all individuals with an egalitarian method of compensation.
The Morality behind Capitalism
Unfair concentration of power and wealth among a segment of society that controls capital and derives its wealth through exploitation, creates an unequal society, does not provide equal opportunities for everyone to maximise their potentialities and does not utililise technology and resources to the maximum potential nor in the interests of the public.
Now, Mr. Godwin, from the above definitions of Socialism and Capitalism, which is hypocritical and which is moral ?
[i]Godwin on September 1st, 2009 5.24 pm I don’t get your point, irobottoo.
If you think the current gahmen is robbing you, by all means try to vote them out; [/i]
wow!
TRY you meant votin is a TRY, not a freewill?
now how many ntuc points you want without TRYIN @ all?
even a plastic bag ntuc want to TRY to sell
and in your owned TINY mind leekuanyew inc is not robbin YOU @ all?
where do you lived?
defiteniteLEE not potong pasir…
Godwin
You might not know this but you are one of the reasons why Sporeans shun low-paid jobs like cleaners or retail services in their quest for better paying jobs. By accepting those jobs, they will be poor and it is their fault they are poor.
75) Ahgong
///// I am just wondering
After AFP or Mr Leong made this report and video, did any one of them managed to help/direct the poor old lady to some charity group or volunteers?? //////
I wonder too.
110) Godwin
/////Anyway, with more than a hundred comments I think it is time for me to stop.
I think I have stated my case clearly and consistently. //////
Wise move to stop. I empathise with you. In TOC, logic is a lonely swimmer without a lifejacket, drowned in a ocean of emotions.
“Better to be among the few who are right than to be with a mob that is wrong ” – Napolean Hills.
[i]Better to be among the few who are right than to be with a mob that is wrong ” – Napolean Hills. [/i]
and napoleon was sent to jail by his enemy in an island as big as sentosa right?
which other napoleon you want to TRY as well?
napoleon solo perhaps?
Godwin,
Do you pay your taxes to the poor direct? Or do you paid taxes to the garmen? Why do you bother whether 1 more cent of your hard earned money goes to the poor? e.g. a rich men can have 5 houses and 10 cars, what is just a few more percentage of taxes he paid. If that amount of money can help the very poor and unfortunate people in their health care and basic needs isn’t it wonderful? What kind of society do you want to see Singapore become? A social breakdown that will eventually leads to an unstable society where there are destitute all over the country. This will surely happen in this generation. I hope in your little indulgence you can also think about the poor, and to give a helping hand to them too. It pays to be little kinder, if you believe in good deeds.
My take on it.
Helping the poor has a limit too i agreed and i always thought our government did a good job in it and only recently after the $100B losses i come to realise that they are selfish and despicable. Double standard in their dealing. Here they tell the poor to go help yourself with the pittance money given and allow health care costs to go sky high and cost of living to go up. And warning about Sinkies asking for a welfare state. Have we become a welfare state, how much GDP is pumped into helping the poor and really how many destitute (numbered in tens of thousands) have been helped? The GARMEN just TCSS only,no accountability to the 100B losses but can ask our poor old folks to fly kite! Kindness in our gahmen? Repect our poor old elderly? Generosity? Everyone here knows our gahmen is very stingy towards less economical Singaporeans. VERY SAD rite? Anyway as a middle class citizen i dont expect help from the gahmen too. The more i ask the more SHIT comes our way. Rather my point is the POOR must be given a helping hand.
FG
APEK,
“Wise move to stop. I empathise with you. In TOC, logic is a lonely swimmer without a lifejacket, drowned in a ocean of emotions.”
Humans have emotions. Robots dont. Robots that listen to commands from the Master Remote Control cant feel emotions and have weirdo logic. I sympathise you for having to come to TOC to understand how AI cant replace real human emotions. P65 is good for you. Apek you age group leh awaiting you are your different models of robots, need oil change?
“no one left behind.”
“Staying together, moving ahead.”
“Increase gst to help the poor.”
Pls remember what we our elites have promised when you step into the polling booth the next time.
Ask yourself if they have lived up to their past election promises and whether they have been kept.
117) KopitiamApek
By quoting that quote from Napolean, it seems that you feel that you are right while the others are wrong Apek? perhaps, you can recast it into that both can be right….
as you have been trying to push your so-called logic onto others, it is a sure way to invite criticism, and when you receive criticism you pose such comments, it is no wonder this happen…
Apek, you and I are human, we assume and generalize, you should recognise that as a fact instead of just pointing at others
Dear TOC readers,
I want to donate some money to this poor elderly woman who must have contributed to society especially when she was younger.
If someone is arranging this, I like to know and donate even though I am still jobless.
Again, i see that a Foreign 1st world, world class news media have reported a sad situation in singapore.
I wonder have Youths of singapore read this? Or are they living in Oblivion 90210?
111) Rod on September 1st, 2009 7.21 pm
so perhaps you can enlighten us with examples of which americans praises the effort and what was the effort involved? please, we can’t wait to learn from you…so that we can be filled with pride…
“It is largely due to their vision that Singapore has done well so far.”
Rod Rod, so you are attributing the success of the nation to the gahmen…..somehow you have failed *again* to notice and mention that without the hardworking people, it will never have work out…
They deserve a whole lot of credit since nation building is no easy task.
perhaps as an example Rod, if you are a manager and I assign you a target/vision but i give u inadequate resources *aka people” and you can’t outsource, do you think you can achieve it? thus, the people deserve even more credit….i can give u a general without soldiers to fight a way, do you think you can win?Somehow like I have said elsewhere Rod, I doubt you have ever step foot in the corporate world…and If you have, i doubt your success in leading people…
“Is it really a simple case of rich politicians who do not go the fullest extent to help these folks?”
Rod, I am quite sick of quoting this example, but if you never read it…go check out Dr Lily Neo’s recommendation and what was the sarcasm she receive from the minister when she request for increase aids to the needy? perhaps you only hear their good stuff and miss out on this, i don’t blame you of course….and speaking of which, dear Rod, if you are a politician who wants to serve and help the people and is drawing a million dollar salary…and when you really want to help the people, you can graciously increase the amount to a justifiable level or in the extreme case *which i doubt will happen*, lead by example and use that million dollar pay to help those in need….
Singapore doesn’t need a parrot in a vibrant, well-informed discussion…Well-informed is a must Rod, but we sure don’t need people here to sing praises to people who don’t deserve it totally….
lets not kid ourselves, the rich don’t give their wealth to the poor willingly through taxation and govt but they also understand it is still in their interest that there is no mass extreme poverty. (french revolution etc)
in these modern times, it may be easier to move ur wealth to another country when the poor revolts or govt taxation goes up but still not exactly that easy such that the rich will refuse to ‘help’ the poor.
the problem with singapore is that we see the pap govt as taking all the money and keeping it for itself instead of redistributing it.
its brewing resentment from the poor who start to hate the govt & rich (ugly and incorrect but its human nature)
and the rich who hate the poor who is seen to be more & more greedy.
but in actual fact its the govt that is growing more and more greedy, sucking from both the rich and the poor.
Godwin,
post #107 on September 1st, 2009 6.52 pm
“I don’t think we are engaging, mice is nice.”
i tried…
“I have stated quite clearly what I think the so-called call for more “help” to the poor amounts to morally, whie you have not answered in what specific form your assertion that the rich “must” help the poor will be carried out.”
i know, to you its like robbery, post #86…? i amuses me how “helping” can equate to “rob”…
spin off from,
post #101 on September 1st, 2009 6.15 pm
“Is the knife-point of a robber any different from the gunpoint of a policeman enforcing an unjust law?”
“Am I correct to say that it is your belief that the rich have an obligation to give money to the poor even if they do not wish to?”
you do not represent the rich, there is no good reason to answer that question.
when the poor bear the brunt of “market forces”, do the majority of the working class (low to mid level) have a choice? people who promise “the light at the end of the tunnel” have an obligation to fulfil.
perhaps you should read up on S’pore’s Total Defense concept, to get the bigger picture.
KopitiamApek
post #117 on September 1st, 2009 9.22 pm 110) Godwin
“Wise move to stop. I empathise with you. In TOC, logic is a lonely swimmer without a lifejacket, drowned in a ocean of emotions.”
do you have issues about being lonely?
“Better to be among the few who are right than to be with a mob that is wrong ” – Napolean Hills.
what if the few you stand shoulder to shoulder with those who are wrong? how do you come to terms with that?
can somebody tells the MSM that when MM Lee said he had the mandate, MIW was voted in by 66.6% of (eligible voting) mob? :)
may the mob vote them in (again)!! lol…
“116) KopitiamApek on September 1st, 2009 8.59 pm
I wonder too.”
I wonder whether you have read the news on some homeless & unemployed poor soul being sent to jail for pitching a tent along east coast.
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_418240.html?vgnmr=1
It is quite difficulty for even poor people who are trying to be independent in their own way – e.g pitching a tent for shelter. Now tell me, which 1st world country (oops) will send people to jail for this kind of things.
125) Yamamoto on September 1st, 2009 11.42 pm
I think I am doing Yamamoto a favour by asking him/her to read beyond local news and events. Look upon it as me teaching him/her to fish. He/She can say thank you if he/she is in a grateful mood. You know, reading and listening to qualified authorities be it through interviews, op-eds or research papers, etc, will surprisingly expand one’s mind. Well, it stops one from listening to that growing little angry voice in one’s head complaining about his/her insignificant place in this world. When that happens there is no better cure than the cure of self-justification. We must admit that the harsh realities of life, inevitably, do lead the weak to wonder down that path. Remember, the learning never stops.
I honestly do sympathise with those like Yamamoto because, as I have hypothesised elsewhere, there are a lot of people who truly feel they have been hard done by. Being incapable of processing the hardship they face, they throw rocks at the most convenient target.
By the way, the responses and comments are supporting the hypothesis I formed in another topic. I am almost close to forming a conclusion about the mental state of the aggrieved Singaporean.
[i]Being incapable of processing the hardship they face, they throw rocks at the most convenient target.[/i]
indeed well spoken
are you talkin about leekuanyew perhaps when laulee is throwin rock @ the new nmp? what is the new english word? hallputtin or sumtin ssamthing…
130) mice is nice
everyone is right from their point of view : )
131) ltalanlan on September 2nd, 2009 3.12 pm
Let me help out Italanlan if I may. Truly, as we all should do so for one another from time to time.
It seems like there is a growing commodities job market here in Asia (including Singapore I might add). Go tell them how well you did in university and that you deserve a job because your ancestors and many Singaporeans build the nation in which they do business and profit. That will be leveraging on the hard work of others, wouldn’t it? But who cares? Forget dignity. It’s all about the money, baby!
Relax! Smile! Laugh!
What uptight Singaporeans. Don’t look like someone stole your lunch bowls.
<>
As if being poor is not punishment enough, they must still be made the butt of jokes
by our elites. I wish the day will come when these jokers need to seek this secret of
longevity for themselves and their loved ones!
Admin,
Why has part of my post been discarded?
Kindly restore it as the remaining part makes no sense. Tks.
I have only one remark in this debate :
The PAP and this Government make me puke
[i]Relax! Smile! Laugh!
What uptight Singaporeans. Don’t look like someone stole your lunch bowls. [/i]
my ricebowel is unbreakable.give away free people also don’t want..serious kosher stuff..i wanted to train new disciples, but deciples compliant carry water from 2nd storey to groundfloor is hardwork even if they carry via elevator…you tell me lor
i am goin to the grave with my 18th palm tigeroil arukin kungFOOL stance…
do u all think that the garmen kept insisting that “our entitlement system will be low” is partly because they do not want the PA to be abused by those people who are just not motivated & working hard enough to improve their state of living?
as someone who works in a vwo, i keep seeing the same group of people coming forward to seek financial aid… they are young, look healthy, and very often, one hand pushing a pram and the other carrying an infant, and behind them are one or two more kids running around & making a scene in the office… you get the picture. yes, this is a picture of reality i see with my own eyes almost everyday.
and oh yes, our dear gahmen does not provide baby bonus & other benefits to the fourth child in the family… have you ever asked yourself why is this the case when the gahmen seems so desparate for newborns?
KopitiamApek
post #132 on September 2nd, 2009 8.20
////everyone is right from their point of view : ) ////
its not about opinions, unless to you, anyone who does not agree with you is wrong.
mgby
post #138 on September 3rd, 2009 12.14 am
////as someone who works in a vwo, i keep seeing the same group of people coming forward to seek financial aid… they are young, look healthy, and very often, one hand pushing a pram and the other carrying an infant, and behind them are one or two more kids running around & making a scene in the office… you get the picture. yes, this is a picture of reality i see with my own eyes almost everyday.////
is anything done to plug the loopholes to prevent exploitation?
I believe ths current MCYS strategy is to let VWO do the welfare work while it supports by funding its infrastructure and as well as a certain % of annual recurring operational cost.
Once I was part of a street donation drive along Kwan Im Temple precinct, and I approached this European tourist to explain our cause. He apologized, “Sorry, I will not donate, because I think your government is not giving enough.”
That statement led me to ponder my role in one of the many (thousands in fact) VWOs on this tiny island. I can still remember times when I struggle hard to decide if I need to ‘advise’ these needy families not to disclose their rental income, or their incomes of a few hundreds dollars (with the rental) might prevent them from getting subsidies.
That brings me to the rule of law. I’ve seen the criteria for the various subsidy schemes amended so rigorously over the years. Call it an attempt to fine tune our systems so that to maximize the benefits. Or rather these are just more and more steps taken to plug those tiny holes in our nation’s coffers, where traces of honey still drips into the mouths of hungry families below. I wonder. But there’s a curse in social service, that if you are too passionate and rigid, you won’t last the first year. I am fortunate to last 7 years…
Oh, there’s another so-called “Destitute Persons Act” to ‘take care’ of the ‘down and out’. And for those who still think we’re ok, there’s Murphy’s Law (“If anything can go wrong, it will”).
hi SpongeBoob
post #142 on September 6th, 2009 9.23 pm
thanks for sharing your personal experience on VWOs. from what you mention it does seem like those people fine-tuning the system to prevent abuse may have gone overboard.
also, it seems like those plugs put in place in the past may itself contribute to the plight of the poor of today. as the value of money depreciates over time, some digits in means testing may be due for updates to reflect today’s cost of living more accurately.
if i were a foreigner, i too may hold the view that the govt should do more to aid the needy. afterall, being an affluent nation, that excess wealth accummulated ought to be channeled back to society- the people.
;)
sorry folks…
the government or some parts of it are not working for the critizens of singapore…
maybe once a long time ago they did…but along they way some of them “forgot” it…
to a number of them the citizens own them everything…be it rich, middle class or poor…
those around them of course gain advantages so it reach a point they think they are better…
anyway what does it matter….as long as many of these particular breed of self centred folks are in key positions…be it in singapore or in the UN etc…
well…future generations and children will have much to look forward to for the future…
loss of bio-diversity, green house effect, over-fishing, deforestration, poor becoming poorer thus life becomes unbearable, future wars over resources,…
no worries…these self centred folks can have all the money and material stuff they want…
wunder do they know ultimately in the end…they in-directly and directly contributing to the end of humanity in the years ahead…
How can A person who earns S$1000 per hour understand B person who earns S$4 per hour? B is struggling for daily survival, and the cost of food and daily expenses keep going up… How can A person helps B person? Skill upgrade at the age of 65 years old and boss (A person?) can still cut half of B person’s pay with a “valid” reason: “You’re old”…??? Can Singapore be a place for most elderly to retire with dignity?
I think that the government not only has let the elderly down. Even the mentally ill or disabled are ignored too. There are no anti-discrimination laws to begin with nor is there a minimum wage law. No human rights laws either. Or a law to protect the disabled/mentally ill/aged. I have a friend who killed herself recently. Earlier on, she told me that she wanted to secure a place at one of the long-term centre (not IMH) for the mentally-ill but she had no money. She was not well at all, despite her frequent counselling, psychotherapy and medications, YET she had to force herself to work. She had PTSD and depression and was in and out of jobs. During her stays in IMH, she had to use her (however little) Medisave money to pay for her long-term stays (few months). I find this so ridiculous. You are not functioning well mentally and is not working, how can the government still make her pay? The non-supportive environment here is just too much.
I also see these 2-3 old aunties who try to save money by standing outside a ShopNSave supermarket everyday without fail so as to get free stickers (in exchange for rebates etc) from customers. I also see this old uncle who sells ice cream in a cart near my home every few days. And all the poor elderly still working in their 70s, 80s, 90s etc.
It is just so sickening to see these people suffer like this. I can imagine myself in their shoes 30-40 years down the road and it scares the hell out of me.
I think LKY has forgotten that he himself is an elderly too. Perhaps the years of being surrounded by cash has blinded him. I have lots of relatives who are PAP supporters – mostly well-to-do families or families who had kids receiving scholarships. The ELITE as he said it before has to rule the country. Even Obama earns less than our PM! Isn’t that funny?
Wrote this to AWARE and AWWA. No reply since. Not even an acknowledgment or courtesy reply.
—–
Dear AWARE,
I have written a concern to Asian Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA) for advise and assistance into the plight of a handicapped elderly lady.
However there is no reply from them so far.
As an association of women’s rights, is there research and advocacy work for these elderly ladies who faces abject poverty and lack of social security in Singapore? Especially with the growing of a greying nation, how are these issues addressed and mitigated?
———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, Mar 22, 2010 at 2:45 PM
Dear AWWA,
I am writing to inquire if any assistance can be given to a handicapped elderly lady selling tissue paper at Ang Mo Kio Market centre.
Due to old age and loss of one of her legs, she is now traveling on wheelchair to sell tissue paper for a living.
Pardon to my inadequate dialect comprehension, I am only able to understand some of her woes and complains.
Apparently she has 5 children but all have abandon and not supporting her.
She also seems to have gotten into trouble with the authorities and received summon for illegal peddling.
I have already advised her to consult the local MP for help but she mentioned it is of no use.
As such, I am appealing to AWWA to advise or possibly lessen the poor lady’s predicament.