LIFE under the movement control order (MCO) is difficult, financially, physically and mentally, but for single mothers the struggle is magnified.

A year of living with the threat of Covid-19 under varying levels of movement restrictions has been an extended struggle for some of these women, whose lives were already hard in a country where unwed mothers are stigmatised.

For most of them, the biggest challenge is securing a good future not just for themselves, but for their children.

Vanshika, a mother of two kids, was a department head at an engineering company in Shah Alam before she was retrenched because of the pandemic. 

The Puchong resident told The Malaysian Insight she has not been able to get another job due to what she felt was racial, physical and social discrimination. 

“I have been finding it hard to find a job as most positions require me to be fluent in a certain language. I’m also a plus-size woman so the discrimination is double. On top of that, my status as a single mother gets me bullied,” she said. 

Vanshika is also having difficulty getting government aid as she does not have the required documents. 

“I tried applying for Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat yesterday – if you have two kids you may receive RM1,800. But if I click ‘single’ for my marital status,  my kids would not be counted due to the fact that I do not have the required documents. I’m unable to click on the status of ‘single mother’,” she said.

Vanshika’s job loss has left her in the B40 category. But even before this, her status as a single mother had made it hard for her to get help.

“I have approached many NGOs but because I was in the M40 income group I was rejected,” she said.

Right now, a main worry is the lack of a laptop for her seven year-old son to attend classes. 

“So far, we’ve been borrowing laptops from family and friends,” she said. 

“I am an unwed mother of two. On a normal day life is already demanding and I work hard to make ends meet because we don’t get much assistance. With the pandemic, it’s become worse.” 

She said while the government should consider implementing more policies in aid of single parents, it must first acknowledge unwed mothers and allocate appropriate assistance to them. 

In Bukit Jelutong, Natalia Zakaria (not real name), 40, was divorced last year. she said she is worried about keeping her job because of the uncertain climate. 

The mother of one said her former husband who now lives abroad used to give RM800 in monthly child support. However, he stopped sending the money in September last year.

“Fortunately, I have managed to keep my pay with only my transport allowance being cut. However, I work as a trainer for a music enrichment programme for private kindergartens across Malaysia and the company I work for has been affected as so many of these kindergartens have been hit pretty hard by this pandemic.” 

Natalia, who earns less than RM4,000 a month, said she is looking at ways to supplement her income should her employer decide to cut its losses.

“I don’t have much in my EPF account or savings so I’m very concerned. I stopped working for a long time when I was married and have only just started to build up my savings.” 

She said she tried applying for a credit card and a personal loan but her applications were rejected as she had no credit score. 

“I’m living pay cheque to pay cheque at the moment and it scares me,” she said. 

During the first movement control order last year, Natalia lived with her father. However, life in a big household took a toll on her son, whom she suspects of having dyslexia.

“Consequently, I decided to move out and rent a one-bedroom unit fairly close to my dad’s place. On the one hand, I have more space and more control over my environment now that we’re living on our own. On the other hand, I now have to worry about paying rent and utilities and juggle my responsibilities for my job, my son and maintaining the home.”

During the first MCO last year, The Malaysian Insight reported that single mothers were hit hard by the health crisis and were finding it difficult to provide for their children. 

Those who were self-employed or running small businesses said their income was drastically reduced due to mandatory shutdowns aimed at curbing the coronavirus pandemic.

They had to rely on government aid and handouts from volunteer groups and many said they suffered mental anguish. 

Another single parent, Adevila from Puchong who also has a special needs child said she has removed her daughter from school as she can no longer afford the fees. 

“The private homeschool has increased their school fees even though we parents are badly hit on income or have had to take a pay cut. My income during this pandemic has been badly affected as it is related to services,” said the 49 year-old who is a small-time entrepreneur providing daily services such as cleaning and transportation.

She said her main worry right now is whether she can continue putting food on the table, pay her rent and bills, and keep life going for her special needs child and herself.

Adevila takes her child with her everywhere as she cannot afford a child minder. On days when the child feels restless indoors, she takes the child out for a drive by herself.

Despite receiving BPR aid and some NGO help, with just an average income of RM1000-2000 a month, Adevila said it is still difficult to cover all expenses.

Kuih seller Norbiyah Anwar, who was interviewed in the previous article, told The Malaysian Insight her business is still badly affected since six months ago. 

She said whatever cash aid she receives from the government, Lembaga Zakat or NGOs is immediately spent on kuih ingredients and food necessities.

The mother of two was lucky enough to receive help from Lembaga Zakat which sponsored her children’s school items. 

However, she is still struggling to find pocket money for one of her children who is currently in boarding school and waiting to sit for SPM. 

Meanwhile, Sha M, a teacher and mother of two from Johor Bahru said while her finances are still stable, she struggles to cope between her two children and work. 

“As a teacher, I am required to teach online. I have 2 young children of my own that had to be monitored for online lessons as well. This is the most challenging. Having to juggle work, chores and monitoring them,” said the 38 year-old.

Besides suffering a paycut, she has lost additional side income as the MCO has shut the extra tutoring she provides.

“I hope the MCO won’t be extended as I had additional tutoring but had to stop it due to the MCO so that was another hit on my finances.” 

The MCO is currently enforced nationwide except for Sarawak. ,Malaysia has reported daily infections above 3,000 for a week now and hospitals are nearly at full capacity with over 40,000 active Covid-19 cases. – January 24, 2021.