IPOH: His savings with the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) have all been used to clear his youngest son’s debts to loan sharks.
“I’ve paid about RM70,000 to the ah longs,” said a 59-year-old waiter, who wanted to be known only as Foo.
Yet, these illegal money lenders have not stopped harassing him.
“Each time they call, they would demand a different amount,” he said.
Foo, who is pleading to the loan sharks to stop hounding his family and his neighbours, said he no longer has money to settle his 22-year-old son’s debts.
“It is useless to harass us,” he said at a press conference organised by Pasir Pinji assemblyman Goh See Hua here yesterday.
Foo added that his 54-year-old wife has been suffering from depression and that her condition had worsened due to stress.
He said he had been contacted by several loan sharks between Dec 27 last year and Jan 4 this year, and that they had threatened to splash paint and burn his house down if he does not settle his son’s debt.
“White and red paint was splattered in front of my house on Jan 12 and 13.
“But the loan shark won’t say how much in total my son owes them,” said Foo, who is a father of three.
He said he believed his son had borrowed from the loan sharks to feed his online gambling.
“He works as a salesman and travels throughout the country most of the time.
“He would only come home to ask for money to repay the debt and would leave after I transfer it to his bank account,” he said.
Foo said he had not been able to get in touch with him since seeing him last month.
“I want him to come back, take responsibility and settle the problem himself,” he added.
Goh cautioned about the dangers of gambling, saying: “Gambling is not a ‘quick money’ solution. It’s better for people to earn money the old-fashioned way, which is through work.
“There’s just no end for anyone who gets too consumed with gambling, especially when they borrow money from loan sharks,” he said.
