IN THIS COUNTRY, EVERY PERCEIVED HELP OR AID GIVEN IS ONLY SKIN DEEP. IT IS TO FOOL FOREIGNERS TO THINK WE ARE LUMBER#1 IN EVERYTHING.
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--> <!-- more than 4 paragraphs --> I REFER to Dr Ng Liang Wei's letter, 'Set up pregnancy fund to curb abortions' (Aug22).
I am an unwed mother. At one point, when I was struggling to decide whether to keep my baby or abort it, I realised I was not entitled to Baby Bonus, four-month maternity leave, six days of childcare leave and other benefits. In the end, however, I decided to keep the baby and managed to borrow money from friends and relatives.
Last month, I delivered my baby boy and I am so delighted I made the right choice to keep him. But I know my problems will not end here. Indeed, I will need to work doubly hard to support myself and my baby.
I contacted the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports for aid, but its reply was that help is given only to couples with a child, not single parents. Will such a stand not push single mothers- to-be towards abortion?
Surely, single parents need more help than couples. Unwed mothers have to be brave to face single parenthood and shoulder the financial burden alone. I hope the Baby Bonus, leave and other benefits can be based on the child, rather than whether the baby was born to a couple or not.
It would also be helpful if hospital charges for unwed mothers can be 100 per cent deductible under Medisave so they do not have to fork out cash.
Peck Chai Hong (Ms)
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