HI MY NAME IS WESLEY WEE

Unlike other ordinary child I was born in 16th of March 1979, with a medical condition called Cerebral Palsy.

A part of my brain was damaged because of an abnormal development when I was still in my mother's womb. Cerebral Palsy affects my muscle control, muscle coordination, muscle tone, posture & balance, therefore I have been wheel-chair bound for the whole of my life, without it I cannot go anywhere.

Growing up as a child I lived with my grandmother in her flat in Changi. She was my primary caregiver until 1998, the year she passed away. Then I moved back to stay with my parents but shortly after I moved back to stay, my father died of liver cancer in year 2000. I have been staying with my wife ever since, after I have moved out of my family home in a HDB flat.

I remember back in the days my grandmother would always visit me whenever I am sick or feeling lonely. She will show care, encourage & hug me and tell me to be strong.

On the other hand my very own mother & father always hurt me with their unkind words saying I'm useless and how I'm being a huge burden to them. As I am unable to completely control my bowel & bladder I would sometimes inevitably urinate and defecate in my bed, I still remember the time when my parent came back from the market, realizing that I messed up the place they did not just scold me verbally but also whipped me with belt and hit me with cane till my whole body was full of lashes, and all I could do was to cry.

Those physical pain were nothing compared to the nasty words that came out from my parents things like "You go and die!".. Why would any father or mother say such hurtful words to their child? Is it because of me being handicapped or am I even their child?

There were times when I questioned God why would He let a kid like me bear all these sufferings? I even came to a point questioning why God even created me to let me suffer, mocked & looked down upon by others.

The more others say I'm useless the more hopeless I felt, but God sent people like my grandmother who is like an angel to me to give me hope, it was those words that my grandmother said to me that gave me strength to carry on, she will say to me "Even if your papa & mama don't love you, you must remember Ah Mah still love you."

There was once my parents physically abused me and locked me inside the room and suddenly, my grandmother who I used to call “mama”, came to look for me and she asked my parents where is “Ah boy/John”? they both said that John went to school... I heard mama’s voice and I forced my mouth to utter sounds to call her “mama! mama! help me! help me!” And when she opened the door, she saw me lying on the ground with bruises all over my body. She was very shocked and asked my mother why did they do that to me... And she took me away from them, I was 5 years old then.

After 2 years of staying with my grandmother, who treated me very well, my parents took me back again because a doctor asked my mother if they will let me undergo for a leg operation and despite my “mama” disagreement to the operation, my parents grabbed the opportunity to say YES to the Doctor hoping that it would be the cure for me to walk normally. 1986, I was 7 years old then when I underwent for the legs operation and after the operation, the doctor put a cast on my legs, I was carrying that cast for 6 months and that was the reason that I cannot stay on my “mama’s” house because it would be hard for her to take care of me and having with me those casts on my legs, she cannot carry me easily.

Prior to the operation, I was still able to walk for a few steps. But after the operation, the whole situation got worse, I CAN NO LONGER WALK.... Every night, my parents forced me to walk and same thing! They whipped my back and kept on hurting me many times because I cannot do what they wanted me to do.

2 years later, I was 9 years old then, a Malaysian woman came and talked to my mother and said to her that if they will let me go with her to Malaysia and live with her, she will provide treatments for me there.. Without hesitation, and without asking me whether I want to go with that woman and live in Malaysia, my parents agreed immediately. All I can do that time was to cry..... But I don’t know who told my “mama” that I was supposed to leave on that day. She came to our house and asked my mother if she was giving me away.

My mother could not answer directly, so mama asked her for my things and took me out from there at 2pm, an hour before the Malaysian woman came to fetch me. Since then, I am living very happily with my grandmother. She sent me for schooling in 1994. My school was scheduled in the morning so she woke up at every school days at 5am to prepare my food and assist me to dress up for school. We live simple life every day. We had a difficult time paying the monthly school fees and bus fares but the LORD was our great provider.

May 2006, this was the moment when I accepted Jesus Christ in my heart as my personal Savoir and my Lord. Since then, I started to look at myself as how God looked at me. After all that I been through, the LORD still made a way for me to be free from those bondage -- > the bondage of physical abuse, the bondage of hating myself and thinking that I never had a value on this earth, the bondage of anger & hatred towards my family because of what they did to me, and most of all the bondage that hindered me to see how fearfully & wonderfully God made me in His own image and likeness. . The Lord has been faithful to me even when I doubted Him, I believe that even as a cerebral palsy patient, it will not stop me from receiving God’s overflowing love & blessings.

From that moment on, I have learnt to leave everything to GOD, He has given me strength to show forgiveness and love for my family.

I didn't want to stay in a welfare home as it would limit my freedom, I wanted to be independent just like any other adult. I feel that I should not keep relying on others for help, so I decided to look for jobs outside. However being a Cerebral Palsy patient means that there are many things I cannot do and it is hard for me to find jobs that will sustain me/to help me survive. I experienced working as a product demonstrator of The Pathfinder.
The Pathfinder, is an Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) device for disabled people who have difficulty communicating.

I attained a license to be a street hawker in the year 2010, selling products and doing my own small business, but it did not come by easy.

Under the National Environment Agency (NEA), the street hawking scheme aims to help the needy earn a living. However, its regulations stipulated that individuals applying need to be above 45 years of age, unemployed for at least three months and be in financial difficulties. Individuals who had acquired the license are only allowed to sell in areas designated by NEA.

Despite such regulations, street hawking is often discouraged as it is deemed to be an unstable source of income. Instead, individuals are encouraged to seek public assistance through the social assistance scheme. My applications for license to street hawk had been rejected a few times. It was only with the help from one of my social worker then I was able to seek the help of my MP (Member of Parliament) to finally get an approval. However, I had to withdraw from social assistance scheme in order to attain the license to sell.

I was also designated three areas where I was allowed to conduct my business, around HDB compounds in Punggol, Pasir Ris and Tampines. NEA restricted me from going to the central areas within Tampines and Pasir Ris. I am not sure if I can survive in these areas as I am only allowed to sell under certain HDB blocks or its nearby coffee shops, but I will have faith and trust that God will provide for me.

God has already provided me with good friends & people who would care to lend a helping hand, He will never forget nor forsake His children.

If God CAN transform & use even a person like me to be a testimony to others, so CAN you!

- With Love, Wesley Wee