I was walking home along Race Course Road on Sunday evening. It was a spontaneous decision to work off a massive lunch over the 3km it would take to get home. It was busy as expected, mostly with foreign workers out and about on their day off. As I made my way to the junction with Birch Road, I saw an older, stout Caucasian man lying slumped on the grass verge on the traffic island. His body was partly twisted, and a walking cane lay a metre away. I rushed towards him, asked if he was alright and proceeded to help him up. He had trouble righting himself, and he said his left leg was weak. After some effort, the gentleman managed to stand upright, with my hands providing support under his shoulders. He was disoriented but coherent. I wasn’t sure if he was inebriated but he could hold a conversation albeit at a subdued pace.
When I asked what happened, he explained that he had tripped, lost his balance and fell. When I asked if he lived nearby, he replied affirmatively but there was no one home to fetch him. I next asked if he was in pain or needed an ambulance. He insisted he merely wanted to get home, that he hated hospitals. As we slowly made our way towards where he lived, we engaged in rather amiable conversation. I introduced myself and he said his name was John, and that he was 63 years old. From his accent I had assumed he was a tourist from England but he explained he was a Singapore permanent resident for many years. He could even joke that I was as chatty as his ex-wife, and that his caretaker would be upset when she finds out about his predicament.
We trudged carefully towards one of the smaller lanes spreading in and out of Race Course Road while chatting. I kept firmly by his side to guide his slow sometimes wobbly steps along the pavement, making sure his footing was accurate and didn’t teeter off the edge. After accomplishing 30 metres or so, I could tell John was tiring as he began to lean off balance. I quickly got help from a pedestrian to bring a chair over from a nearby restaurant for John to take a needed recovery break. I also discovered John had a phone and via a call to his helper, I ascertained exactly where he was putting up - about 50m down the road.
During our breather, I spotted a few Certis Cisco personnel making their way towards us. They had high-visibility vests on while making their rounds monitoring the Little India crowds this weekend. As they came by, I requested if they could help me with supporting John to his nearby apartment. I have a couple of slipped discs at 50 years old and rendering assistance can often render me bedridden for a bit. The pseudo-cops were hesitant to help outright, and suggested that getting an ambulance was more appropriate. John declined, again repeating his plea to get home. The Certis Cisco staff present were soon joined by a couple more colleagues who popped out a passenger van that had stopped by the side of the road. From the conversation that ensued, I could sense the reluctance from these boys in blue at getting involved, that they had to get back to their regular duties instead. I breathed an internal sign of exasperation and told them we would figure ourselves out and the squad left.
I coaxed John up, and we continued to amble along the busy road. I had to make him lean on a pillar so that I could return the chair borrowed from a restaurant. I think John found it amusing. At some point, in front of the building called home, a couple of passers-by graciously helped to lift John a few steps up when he couldn’t bear his weight on one leg. I escorted him up to his apartment, stayed with him for about 10 minutes to make sure he was settled, and informed his caretaker that he was back safe and sound.
I don’t know how long John was lying on the grass verge for, and am surprised no one else came to his aid. Singaporeans, come on! I’m also disappointed by the lack of reasonable assistance from the Certis Cisco staff. I understand that the situation was out of their regular scope of work. Nonetheless, it would have been decent if they could have rendered some help to bring John home - perhaps a quick ride in the passenger van to relieve an old person from having to struggle 50 metres on foot to his home. With a burgeoning elderly population, there will be more situations like this for everyone to deal with, not just civil servants or medical staff. We’ll need kinder, decent residents to step up and play their part.
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PS - I went back to visit John the next morning. The helper was there and she thanked me. She also rolled her eyes at John for going out unaccompanied, haha. Turns out John was lying on the grass for 10 minutes! Shame to all passers-by! He said he too proud to shout for help though. I told him his pride will kill him one day. There's more to this tale. And I'll probably start visiting this angmoh geriatric on Sundays. He's quite entertaining.
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