'You have a privilege that not everyone has': Deliveryman calls for greater empathy during Covid-19

Many in Singapore have joined the ranks of deliverymen in a bid to put food on the table, but to some, the job provided more than just a paycheque.

For local artist Ke Weiliang, it gave him a new understanding of privilege and empathy.

Ever since he donned his GrabFood uniform and backpack, Ke has been through several "heartbreaking experiences", including the time he encountered a foreign worker who had asked him for food — meant for Ke's customer — as his employer had failed to pay him on time.

In his Facebook post on last Friday (April 10), he contrasted the meeting with another instance. Ke had received a poor rating for a late delivery, despite the fact that he had to brave the rain to get to his customer, and spent some time queueing up in the 40-storey condominium's lobby in order to take his temperature.

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The privilege displayed by keyboard warriors was another observation that left a sour taste in Ke's mouth.

Since the circuit breaker kicked in on April 7, there has been plenty of social media posts admonishing and shaming those who flout the rules. While Ke understood the importance and the necessity of social distancing, he urged for a greater understanding that not everyone was outside for fun.

"To be able to stay at home (let's not even talk about ordering in) means that you have a certain kind of privilege that not everyone has," he wrote.

"For every person who is irresponsibly hanging outside for fun, there is also another person who genuinely does not feel safe to be at home, be it alone or with members of their household — whom they may not be on good terms with."

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Speaking in Parliament on April 6, Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee noted a trend in "higher rates of domestic violence, domestic quarrels and friction in the family" as people stayed home due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

For many senior citizens, being stuck at home meant suffering from a lack of interaction — a disruption that Kavin Seow, a senior director at Touch Senior Group Home, noted might lead to depression and social isolation.

Ke added: "Sometimes there are complicated circumstances behind the non-conformative actions that people take, that we can never discern on the surface."

rainercheung@asiaone.com

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