Twilight years: About 10 senior citizens are left at the Pondok Al-Jaafar Gua Tempurung shelter every year, most of them abandoned by their families. — AZMAN GHANI/The Star
PETALING JAYA: The car door swings open and an elderly person steps out hesitantly.
It's a scene that is all too familiar for Mohamad Tarudi Bahari, who runs a shelter in Gopeng, Perak, as he watches the old man being being dropped off by his son.
"It's just for a few weeks," Mohamad Tarudi would hear the old man being told by his offspring.
At Pondok Al-Jaafar Gua Tempurung, this "ritual" unfolds time and again. The senior citizen is often left there with just a bag of clothes and a broken heart.
"I've seen this too many times. Each time a car stops by and an elderly person emerges, my heart sinks. I can tell what would transpire in the next few minutes.
"Often it is their own children who bring them over. They tell us that they are leaving the parent here for just a few weeks.
"Within five minutes, they would drive off and that is the last we hear from them," he told Sunday Star.
Mohamad Tarudi said the centre, which has been operating since 2016, has 15 people aged 60 and above out of 165 multiracial residents.
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About 80% of those at the home were abandoned by their families, he said.
On average, he said that about 10 people are left at the shelter every year when caregiving becomes too much for the family.
He spoke of instances when the old folk were brought in by passers-by who saw them being left at bus stops or by the roadside.
"Just days ago, a taxi driver brought a 65-year-old woman all the way from Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, after he found her living under a bridge."
He said the woman had been homeless for over a year after her two daughters sold her house.
"Fortunately, a relative of hers found out about her situation. She agreed to care for her and took her home," he said.
Mohamad Tarudi, 71, has witnessed the grief and confusion of those left behind.
"They feel deprived of love. Most of them are well-aware that their children are busy with work and their own families but all they ask for is a little attention from them every now and then. They are constantly hopeful their children will show up," he said.
"However, we almost never see these old folk being taken back by their families, who are untraceable. So they remain here till they pass away."
Mohamad Tarudi said a newly-arrived person would stay quiet over the first few weeks, staring at the wall before bursting into tears.
Such abandonment happens when their caregiver learns that they have a serious illness or when they are drained of their savings by their children.
"We do our best to keep them comfortable and help them overcome their anguish," Mohamad Tarudi said.
The shelter, which depends on public donations, has even had residents who are educated professionals with well-off children.
Mohamad Tarudi said one of the main issues faced by the shelter is when a resident falls sick or dies and the authority of the next of kin is required.
The shelter would often rely on the hospital’s advice or discretion.
"Many times, we had gone on a wild goose chase in search of their children to inform them of the death of their parent and their duty to perform the final rites," he said.
“However, they were never contactable. The phone numbers and address they had given us were fake.”
