THE BORNEO POST - SATURDAY AUGUST 23rd 2008

Surely, the government can do more for disabled people.
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By Paul Sir
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BLIND musician Alfred Ho was on the line with me last Friday. He called to say his piece on a news report that “only 50 disabled people have applied for the 10,000 jobs made available in the public sector.”

The report quoted Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen as saying that all kinds of jobs were available, from rank and file such as office boys to management level, but unfortunately, there have been few takers.

Alfred was particularly offended by the minister’s remark that “I have mentioned about the vacancies available many times in the newspapers. You (disabled people) cannot expect us to knock on your door and inform you of the opportunities.”

The reason why Alfred was unhappy with Dr Ng’s statement was that he had personally gone to parliament two months ago to see the minister seeking her help to find suitable employment. He did not get to see the minister but Dr Ng’s assistant came out to receive Alfred’s letter of appeal.

“It has been two months now and I haven’t heard from the minister or from her office. Now she is saying that the disabled are not applying for vacancies available.

“But I came knocking on her door and she did not attend to my appeal for a suitable job,” Alfred lamented.

I believe many in Sarawak are also familiar with Alfred Ho, the blind singer/musician. He had appeared many times over RTM and other TV stations. His melodious voice and his uncanny ability to croon many oldies almost to perfection had endeared him to those who love old time favourites.

However, Alfred never had the opportunity to perform in Sarawak. “So far, I have never been invited by anyone to perform in any function in Sarawak,” he said.

But he was in Sabah on several occasions to sing at private functions of the Lions Club and the Association of the Blind in Kota Kinabalu.

Blind since he was three, Alfred recalled that his interest in music started at a very young age. He even formed a boys band in his teenage years.

Upon leaving school, Alfred worked as a telephone operator but as he realised soon after that his calling was in music and singing, he became a professional singer in 1985. He was a regular at the pub circuit and at many premiere social events throughout the country. He also wrote his own songs and had produced some decent albums.

At 59 now, Alfred has not slowed down — he could not afford to. “The problem is, life as a musician does not provide you with a stable income. It also gets tougher when you’re older to land a gig. Also, I do not have a manager because I cannot afford one.”

Four years ago, Alfred was lucky to get a job as a deejay in RTM. However, after six months, he lost his job. He has been making an issue about this over the past years as he claimed that he is still unaware up till today of the real reason why he was asked to leave RTM. As he suspected discrimination (because he is visually impaired), Alfred remains bitter over the incident.

Alfred married 10 years ago but the couple has no children. “No, I think I have to be responsible. With my irregular income, it’s not fair to let the kids suffer later,” he added with a tinge of sadness.

He told me that his last performance was at a private event two months ago and his next one is two weeks away. “So in between, I am actually jobless,” Alfred lamented.

Alfred’s predicament and difficulties he encountered being blind is shared by many of the disabled in our community.

In a way, I’m glad that Dr Ng Yen Yen has said that the government needed to find out why the disabled group had been reluctant to take up the jobs. But I thought that should have been known to her people in the ministry a long time ago. She may be new in the job but the Welfare Ministry has been around for as long as I can read ABC, I think. So it’s another tedious time-wasting process for the government to find out why when the answers are already there. Another Malaysia Boleh mentality, is it?

However, in case the minister wants answers, several NGOs have responded immediately, citing a lack of an integrated transportation system, a failure in communication, and the language barrier.

Selangor and Kuala Lumpur Mobility Association president Anthony Arokia said transport posed a major problem for the disabled. “The trans-port system is a stumbling block. The moment we step out of our houses; we cannot get to the work places,” said Anthony, who is wheelchair-bound.

Taiping Community Services Association vice-chairman Chow Chee Keong said it was unfortunate that some information about the job opportunities did not reach those staying outside the Klang Valley, such as in Taiping, Ipoh and Penang.

“I had, on several occasions, enquired about job opportunities from the Welfare Department office in Taiping, but the officers said they did not know much,” he said.

Beautiful Gate Foundation executive director Sia Siew Chin said many disabled persons were lowly educated and did not speak fluent Bahasa Malaysia.

There you go, Dr Ng Yen Yen. Very familiar answers, don’t you think? I would have thought that her ministry would have studied all these issues before advertising the vacancies for the disabled. So it’s now back to the drawing board again!

I am also glad that the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008 has been gazetted and came into force on July 7. This is the first rights-based legislation for people with disabilities (PWD).

With the enforcement of the Act, PWDs will be able to enjoy better public transport facilities, amenities and services. They will also have equal opportunities to health, education, information, communication and technology and rehabilitation, improved employment opportunities as well as sports, leisure and cultural life.

However, I sincerely hope that the provisions of the Act will be strictly enforced as its effectiveness is para-mount to ensure that the disabled in our society are protected too.

Here, I hope that my talented friend Alfred Ho may find gainful employment soon somewhere, somehow. Alfred, like all our disabled friends, certainly deserve better.