GEORGE TOWN – The plight of single mothers can be addressed effectively if there is a strong support system accorded to them by their biological families and relatives.
Social activist and former Bukit Bintang MP Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said the family members of single mothers, especially the siblings should not abandon them when their married lives fail.
“The abandoned single mothers feel lost, neglected, and unwanted by siblings. It is the moral duty of family members and siblings to guide them and show them the right path to make it in life.
“Hats-off for single mothers. I have seen them fighting, struggling and facing challenges in raising their children after their failed married life. These mothers toil to raise their children, not only by giving them basic education, but making them graduates and successful in life,” he told The Vibes.
Lee said this when he was asked whether single mothers are generally abandoned by their siblings and family.
“Good filial values are important, and it must be sown in the young. These noble values will take the young generations into the right path. This will also stop children from abandoning their aged parents and leaving them at old folks’ homes.
“I have seen this when I was MP, I have handled many cases, the children disowned their parents when hospitals discharge them after being treated,” Lee said.
He said it is the duty of siblings and the family to provide moral and financial support to single mothers as there are various reasons for broken marriages and one cannot be arguing about who is right or wrong.
“The moral and financial support to single mothers will reduce or lessen their challenges and help the mothers, giving them hope to raise their children. It will also prevent them from falling into the wrong hands,” he added.
Lee said the government should do more for middle-aged single mothers, who have a tougher task in providing food, education, medical care and clothing for their children.
Single mother Loh Siew Hong slipped into numerous problems when she separated from her husband in 2019.
Loh’s plight made headlines recently after she was allegedly refused permission to meet her children, whom she had been trying to locate for the past three years since being discharged from the hospital.
She had lost contact with the three children while undergoing treatment for injuries purportedly stemming from an abusive marriage with her ex-husband, Nagashwaran Muniandy.
It was during this void that Nagashwaran is said to have unilaterally converted the children to Islam, following his own conversion, without Loh’s knowledge.
Following the change of faith, Nagashwaran was then convicted and imprisoned for narcotics-related charges and continue to be incarcerated until November this year.
Loh has since divorced Nagashwaran and only managed to meet her children thrice, before being reunited with them on February 21 after the Kuala Lumpur High Court ruling.
Penang Hindu Association president P. Murugiah said single mothers are not neglected or abandoned, but they stay away from their siblings and family members as they do not want them to be in contact with the family.
“Most single mothers leave their family home to follow their lovers, and in some cases the lovers involved in underworld activities abandon their girlfriend or the newly married wife along with their new-borns or young children.
“I know families who now live in cheap hotels with a RM30 daily rate and go out to town to beg for money to pay the room rate. The Welfare Department should step out of the office to look for such families,” he said.
Lee agreed that close family ties and caring for single mothers will prevent them from slipping into serious problems.
He said Welfare Department officers must emulate non-governmental organisations, including charity organisations, which uplift the lives of the neglected. – The Vibes, March 6, 2022
