Mentally-challenged man may face eviction

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George washes his hands in front of his hut. (Inset) George is seen in clothes he has worn for the past week.

George washes his hands in front of his hut. (Inset) George is seen in clothes he has worn for the past week.

MIRI: As soon as the door opened, a strong stench filled the air.

Gorge Frances @ George, 64, a mentally-challenged squatter at Kampung Tunku Abdul Rahman finally emerged after failing to respond to many minutes of loud knocking on the wooden door of the two by three metre structure he calls home.

With ‘windows’ which are just gaps not covered by the ‘walls’ made of roofing sheets, the hut merely provides the most basic of shelter from the elements.

George’s living conditions are deplorable and the source of the stench is the heaps of rubbish piled up inside.

However, he may soon not even have this sad structure to live in as the land owner will evict him, his sister-in-law and her family by the end of this month if they cannot pay RM500 a month in rent.

After his brother died, George has depended on his sister-in-law’s family for daily food and care.

His sister-in-law said the property was sold before her husband passed away.

“We have to move out, and are praying that there is a vacant lot at a longhouse in the area or a lot to put a shelter up,” she said.

Although George is eligible for welfare assistance, he has not received any despite earlier registration attempts by his late brother.

On Thursday, Miri City Caring Society ( MCCS) chairman Pemanca Wilson Siang Lim, secretary Philip Kiew and treasurer Charles Soo visited George to highlight his plight to the Welfare Department and Lambir assemblyman Ripin Lamat.

When contacted, Ripin said the Welfare Department and village chief would look into the case, including the possibility of better care and attention for George at a welfare home.