An honest living: Mohd Syazlee recently teamed up with his childhood friend and opened a massage centre.
KULAI: Despite having lost his business to the pandemic, visually impaired Mohd Syazlee Ramlan has remained resilient, taking up job opportunities wherever the 28-year-old could so as to stand on his two feet.
“It is not easy for a blind person to get employment as most employers feel that we may slow them down. I was lucky in that I’ve had a few opportunities to work as a massage therapist in the past.
“In 2018, I decided to start my own massage centre. Things were going well initially. Unfortunately, just two years after I started my business, the country was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“My business was significantly affected. Even though we are now allowed to operate, I hardly get any customers and I am not able to sustain the business,” he told The Star in an interview.
Mohd Syazlee, who has been blind since he was a baby, said that he attended a two-year course in massage therapy from a vocational school for those with special needs in Kulai when he was 17 years old.
“I have never had an interest in being a massage therapist, but my father and late grandfather told me that I have the talent as they often get massages from me to relieve their joint pains.
“They encouraged me to take up the course in the vocational school and I am glad I did so as massage has now become a very important part of my life,” said the third of six siblings.
Mohd Syazlee remained unemployed for a while before he co-founded another massage centre with his childhood friend, Mohd Ezwan Mohd Ali Kusbari, who is also blind.
“My friend later spoke to me about his intention to open up another massage centre in Kulai that could offer job opportunities to others with visual impairment.
“The plan was mooted at the end of last year and we managed to start operating our centre about six months ago,” he said, adding that Mohd Ezwan is the owner of the massage centre here at Jalan Kenanga 29/4, Bandar Indahpura, Kulai.
Apart from Mohd Syazlee and Mohd Ezwan, the massage centre here has two other workers, who are also visually impaired – Winnie Lee Hui Ying, 22, and Mohd Ezwan’s younger sister, Siti Norhafiza Mohd Ali Kusbari, 22.
Mohd Ezwan, 26, a special needs teacher at SJC(C) Kulai 1, said he started the business to give others in his situation a chance to find work.
“We know first-hand how difficult it is for people with special needs to get jobs, and we want them to have a chance to live a more independent life.
To support their initiative, Yayasan Kebajikan Suria Johor Baru has donated a second-hand laptop and a donation worth about RM4,000 to help the massage centre.
