'Sacrificing her well-being and hygiene': Singaporeans divided over video of elderly woman collecting BCRS cans from rubbish bins
SINGAPORE: A video and a photo of an elderly woman going deep into a rubbish bin to fish out cans that were posted recently on social media have received a lot of attention, with some netizens critical of the recycling scheme for beverage containers that was introduced earlier this year in Singapore.
Posted on the Complaint Singapore Facebook page on Oct 24, the video shows a woman standing in the rain over a large green rubbish bin while holding an umbrella over one shoulder. She is seen reaching into the receptacle with her bare hand after poking about with a stick. She takes out tin cans and then transfers them to a larger plastic bag she is holding.
At one point, the woman goes so deeply into the bin that her face is already inside it in order to get the cans that she can bring to a Return Right reverse vending machine in exchange for 10 cents.
The post author wrote that they were in Jurong West waiting for the rain to stop when they noticed the woman, whom they called a “very passionate and hardworking lady” who was “sacrificing her well-being and hygiene” in the name of recycling.
They added that in spite of the rain, the woman opened the bin to search for 10-cent “treasures,” noting that she even had to bend all the way down into the bin and wondering how many “germs and bacteria” the woman was exposed to.
After she was done with this bin, she went on to the next, they added.
There have since been over a hundred comments on the post.
“So unhygienic, never wear a mask and gloves after that touch here and there, spreading germs and bringing it back home,” one wrote.
Another, however, argued, “Let her be. At least she puts back the cover of the bin. Don't need to embarrass her lidat. Have a heart. She needs the money and gets it through her own effort.”
A commenter observed, “If a person needs to dig through the rubbish bins to find recycle bottles, he or she cannot be living a decent life. If Singapore is a rich country, how can we allow this to happen? Surely more can be done to help the less fortunate people.”
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“If you can pick 30 cans for $3, enough for a cup of coffee and bus fare (short distance),” a Facebook user pointed out.
“To some people maybe just 10 cents, but to them (esp. senior citizens), this is one of the ways to earn an income. And they are willing to dirty their hands to find money by themselves. And we are not in their shoes,” another added.
“The extra $$$ helps one way or another. Yes, maybe 10 cents, but if they collect a lot, it can lead to $10, which can save on transportation costs,” a commenter chimed in. /TISG