Senior citizens have a moral and social obligation to take care of themselves

ST Forum, The Straits Times, February 6, 2007



THE report 'Ministerial panel to tackle concerns of the elderly' (The Sunday Times, Feb 4) clearly shows that ministries are trying to pre-empt the impending problem of our greying population. The Government is trying to defuse this ticking time-bomb but the senior citizens themselves have a part to play in taking proper measures so that they do not bring harm upon themselves.

Take my former colleague, who is now 66 years old. One day, he found that the light bulb in his hall was defective. So he got hold of a ladder and positioned it below the light. He climbed the steps but when he reached the top, he felt giddy. He fell with a thud and broke his arm. He was hospitalised for a week and the hospital bill was more than if he had employed an electrician to do the job.

An elderly neighbour, 65, has the job of looking after two young grand-daughters thrust upon her by her professional son and daughter-in-law. Her son told her that he could not trust a maid to look after her precious grand-daughters and it would be better for her to keep an eye on them while he was at work. He felt that as a grandmother, she would not ask for a salary and blood is always thicker than water.

One day, she brought the kids to the playground to play on the swing. Suddenly, the younger grand-daughter ran towards the busy main road. In her haste to stop her, the elderly woman tripped over the kerb and broke two front teeth. Her dental bill came to a substantial amount and it was cold comfort to her when her son told her to be more careful in the future.

Our senior citizens have sometimes laboured under the impression that they are only 35 and they could still perform tasks which they could do years ago.

But they have the moral and social obligation to ensure that they take care so as not to bring pain and suffering upon themselves. The Government has the duty of looking after them, but unless senior citizens take upon themselves to be sensitive and realistic about their own physical robustness, they have only themselves to blame if they incur pain through their own foolishness.

Heng Cho Choon