Living in fear of Covid-19: Disabled couple share woes under MCO
The movement control order (MCO) to contain the Covid-19 pandemic has led to many fretting about the effects it has had on their daily lives.
But apart from cabin fever setting in, those with disabilities have valid reasons to feel anxious.
Disabled couple Raju Arumugam and Valli Munisamy, both 48, reveal how the order has actually left them and their eight-year-old son with no choice but to remain at home even if it meant having to eat only canned sardines and bread daily...
The movement control order (MCO) to contain the Covid-19 pandemic has led to many fretting about the effects it has had on their daily lives.
But apart from cabin fever setting in, those with disabilities have valid reasons to feel anxious.
Disabled couple Raju Arumugam and Valli Munisamy, both 48, reveal how the order has actually left them and their eight-year-old son with no choice but to remain at home even if it meant having to eat only canned sardines and bread daily.
"Both of us need wheelchairs and when we go out we need help from others," Raju told Malaysiakini in a telephone interview.
"Sometimes the walkway is not flat or it may be narrow and sometimes there are stairs. At times we have to get help to reach things placed further up on a rack," he added.
But Valli is actually more concerned that the good Samaritans who help them might actually have the virus without them even knowing it.
“So yes, I'm actually scared to go out to buy basic necessities because there might be those who want to help but we don’t know if they have the virus or not. It's almost impossible for us to practice social distancing.
“I don't dare to go to the wet market anymore. Previously, I would go there once every three days to buy necessities," she said.
Valli is also afraid to use the lifts at their People's Housing Project (PPR) flat in Selayang as the lifts rarely get cleaned.
"It's been days since I took out out the trash. It's not that I don’t want to, but it's because the lift rarely gets cleaned,” she said.
While the couple can go to the sundry shop to buy bread and canned items, Valli lamented having to eat only "sardines and eggs" for days.
“And we would be done for if we get the virus. For disabled people like us, our antibodies are not as strong as the able-bodied,” she added.
Valli and Raju, who both suffer from poliomyelitis, receive a special aid of RM400 each from the Social Welfare Department.
Raju, a former national wheelchair tennis player, earns extra by packing necessary items for an orphanage while Valli is a tailor who also sells Coway water purifiers.
"But with this pandemic, I no longer have customers," said Valli.
Raju and Valli are not the only ones having issues affecting their livelihoods during this period.
Visually impaired masseurs based in Brickfields shared with Malaysiakini how the movement control order forced them to be frugal.
They also shared the need to get assistance from others. This is because the visually impaired are particularly helpless when faced with the shortage of face masks and hand sanitisers.
Most also rely on their sense of touch to obtain information from their surroundings.
But by touching more items, they are more exposed to a higher risk of infection than a sighted person.
