Singaporean activist Gilbert Goh shared a story about an elderly man that he met during an outreach programme to help the less fortunate, and shed light on his living conditions.
Here is the story:
This elderly uncle has an almost empty home derived of anything except a fridge with nothing inside, a small fan without a cover and a pillow for his rest.
His clothes are neatly folded up on a dresser table and there is no TV, washing machine, radio, bed or cooking stove. A bicycle parked inside seems to be his only valuable possession.
It is however very clean and neat without any untidy clutter which usually accompanies most rental units we visited. He is also healthy-looking and simple in the way he lives.
When we first enter the house, he immediately brought us to the closed window which has some water droplets trickling down from the upstairs unit. He says that he has to close the window as the water will splash in together with the wind.
He next shows us a malfunctioning circuit board which troubles him a lot as he couldn’t use the two wall plugs if he switches in the light. He could only use the plugs if the lights are switched off.
We asked him what are his immediate needs after passing him our bento meal and a $50 angbao.
He pointed at the row of neatly-folded clothes and trousers and wanted a clothes rack so he can hang them up properly. He doesn’t want the proper cupboard or any storage cabinet.
Our volunteers have ordered a clothes rack and stand fan for him last night and hopefully, the items will arrive next week so he can live better.
We left him after a 15-minute visit knowing that we have at least met one of his immediate needs.
Do something good for Singapore – a charity movement to alleviate the hardships of displaced elderly Singaporeans.
Images source: Gilbert Goh Facebook