The
man who lived in a Singapore forest for 30 years
Singapore is known for being one of the world's most highly urbanised countries, with no lack of gleaming skyscrapers and luxury apartments. But for one man,
that couldn't be further from the place he called home - a makeshift shelter in
one of the country's forests.
On meeting Oh Go Seng
the first thing that strikes you is the glint in
his eye.
He wears his 79 years
very lightly, looking in far better shape than many people half his age.
Earlier this month,
the story of Mr Oh living in a forest went viral in Singapore - with many
across the country reacting with shock.
Some questioned why
more help had not been given to him - and even more curiously,
how he had managed to live this life unnoticed for 30 years.
Trouble
at Christmas
It all began on
Christmas Day when Mr Oh was stopped by officials and found to be trading
without a licence.
He was selling leafy
vegetables and chillies he had grown - after the pandemic caused him to lose
his job selling flowers at markets.
Mr Oh believes he was
reported by a disgruntled customer after a
disagreement over the SG$1 (£0.55) he was charging for his goods.
At that moment, a charity worker was passing, and noticed he was being
spoken to by officials who had confiscated his
vegetables.
Vivian Pan said she
felt "angry" on his behalf, adding "I didn't want him to go home
empty-handed that day".
"But I
understand that, in terms of the law, they can't sell on the street," she
added.
She filmed the
incident and posted it on Facebook, where it quickly went viral - and Mr Oh's
plight was eventually brought to the attention
of a local member of parliament.
But then the MP,
Liang Eng Hwa, soon discovered that there was far more to Mr Oh's story.
He had in fact been
living unnoticed in a forest for 30 years.
Living
in the forest
Mr Oh grew up
together with his family in Sungei Tengah - a local kampong - or village.
In the 1980s however,
these kampongs were knocked down, to make way for new high-rise buildings.
Most kampong
residents were offered new homes by the government, but Mr Oh was unable to
secure a place of his own.
His brother however,
did get a government flat and Mr Oh was invited to live there - but he
eventually moved out as he said he did not want to impose
on the family.
So, he headed back to
a forest close to where his old home once stood and started to spend nights in
a makeshift shelter built from pieces of wood, bamboo and tarpaulin.
Upon approaching the
shelter, you see ashes in the doorway from the
open fire that Mr Oh would cook on. Piles of his belongings sit in the middle
of the shelter, with the back of the tent used as his sleeping area.
The garden near his
tent is where he would grow his own food. Clothes lines zig-zag between the
trees and a fence protects the vegetable plot from intruders.
The towering
jackfruit tree over his tent he says, provided ample shade, and he never felt
uncomfortable - despite Singapore's sweltering tropical
heat and humidity.
Loneliness was never
a problem either, he says. He kept himself busy tending his garden, although
that, he adds, was made easy by the good growing conditions.
The worst aspect of
living in the forest, he says, was the mice.
They would find their way into his shelter and chew holes in his clothes.
He also worked at
various casual jobs when he could get them.
Mr Oh would sometimes
use the money he earned to take a ferry to Batam, a small island in
neighbouring Indonesia. It was there that he met Madam Tacih with whom he had a
daughter.
Still, after his regular
weekend visits to Batam, Mr Oh would return to his forest home in Singapore.
Like his family in
Singapore, Mr Oh's wife and daughter, who is now 17, say they had no idea about
how he lived.
He would always
answer questions about where he lived by saying he "lived in a
garden", a relative says.
Mr Oh's trips to
Batam stopped once the pandemic hit, with Singapore largely closing its borders
and allowing travel only for those willing to pay for quarantine and Covid-19
tests.
However, he still
persisted in helping his family financially by sending them between S$500 -
S$600 a month.
Homelessness is
relatively rare in Singapore. The country has, on average, one of the
wealthiest populations on Earth.
The city state's
gross domestic product (GDP) per capita stands at almost $60,000 (£44,300),
according to the latest figures from the World Bank.
Singapore also has an
extensive public housing system, with close to
80% of its residents living in property subsidised, built and managed by the
Housing Development Board (HDB).
However, although
rough sleepers are not a common sight in the city it has been estimated that
around 1,000 Singaporeans are homeless.
'I
got to watch television for the first time'
In February this year
- on the first day of the Lunar New Year - with the assistance of his local
MP's team, Mr Oh was given a new home to live in.
Mr Liang said the
team would continue "assisting Mr Oh, including seeking longer term social
assistance [and assisting him in] reuniting with his wife and daughter in
Indonesia".
The one bedroom flat
he now shares with another man, is small and sparsely furnished.
The few personal
possessions in the flat have been supplemented by a fridge, television, kettle
and water heater donated by well-wishers.
Mr Oh is particularly
pleased with the water heater. He was accustomed to washing in water from the
pond next to his shelter in the forest and found tap water too cold.
He now works as a
driver, transporting foreign workers from one job to another, and sometimes
does gardening work, he says.
His moving-in day was
also the first time in more than three decades that he had celebrated the Lunar
New Year with his family in Singapore.
"I ate so much!
And there were many kinds of food I hadn't tasted in years!," he laughs.
"It was wonderful.
I also got to watch television for the first time in more than 30 years. I en However, he clearly still misses the freedom
of life in the forest, though he says he prefers living in a flat.
"I lived there
for so many years, so yes naturally I do miss it," he said in Hokkien, a
Chinese language.
"Even now I
return to the forest every single day. I wake up at 3 AM, get dressed and head
out to check on my vegetables, all before my workday begins."
joyed it so
much."
Source :
BBC (Sun 20 Feb 2022)
LIST
OF VOCABULARY
|
NO |
ENGLISH |
INDONESIA |
|
1. |
eventually |
Pada akhirnya |
|
2. |
skyscrapers
|
Gedung
pencakar langit |
|
3. |
glint |
Berkilau |
|
4. |
curiously |
Penasaran |
|
5. |
disgruntled |
Tidak puas |
|
6. |
charity
|
amal |
|
7. |
confiscated |
disita |
|
8. |
urbanised
|
urbanisasi |
|
9. |
impose |
memaksakan |
|
10. |
doorway
|
Pintu
keluar masuk |
|
11. |
intruders |
Penyusup |
|
12. |
sweltering
|
Panas
terik |
|
13. |
mice |
tikus |
|
14. |
extensive
|
luas |
