Human Story · Melaka, Malaysia
Forgotten in Melaka:
A Couple's Silent Cry for Help
No running water. No electricity. A leaking roof. And nowhere left to turn — the quiet desperation of two people who have knocked on every door.
Every time rain falls on Melaka, most people reach for an umbrella. For one couple — a 64-year-old man and his 48-year-old wife — rain means rushing for buckets and pails. It is the only water they have. This is their story.
A Marriage That Began in Hope
They married in 2022 and moved into an inherited family home in Melaka shortly after — a house that, on paper, meant shelter and a fresh start. What they found instead was a property already falling apart. The water supply had been cut off in 2019. The electricity had been disconnected the same year. Long before they ever arrived, the house had been left to decay.
For four years since their marriage, they have lived without running water and without power — two basic utilities most Malaysians take for granted. Every day is a negotiation with scarcity.
The Conditions They Live In
- ⚡Electricity cut off since 2019 — years before the couple moved in
- 💧Water supply severed since 2019 — they rely entirely on rainwater for bathing and daily needs
- 🏚️Roof leaks severely; the structure is increasingly unsafe for habitation
- ⚖️Entangled in a complex family inheritance dispute that blocks any formal resolution
- 👴The husband, 64, is no longer working and cannot secure income
- 🍱Their primary food source is a monthly food aid package from Tzu Chi — which they describe as life-saving
A Timeline of Neglect
2019
Water and electricity to the inherited house are cut off. The property begins to deteriorate with no occupants to advocate for it.
2022
The couple marry and move into the house, inheriting its problems. They begin adapting to life without utilities — collecting rainwater, living in darkness.
2022–2026
Four years of repeated attempts to seek help. Letters, messages, phone calls. A monthly food package from Tzu Chi — gratefully received — remains the only consistent support they have.
2025–2026
The roof has worsened. The structure is now considered dangerous. Desperation increases as their appeals go unanswered across multiple channels.
Every Door Knocked. No One Answered.
The couple has not been passive. They have reached out with persistence that speaks to how desperate their situation truly is. Their list of appeals includes prominent TikTok influencers in Malaysia, SAMB (Syarikat Air Melaka Berhad), TNB (Tenaga Nasional Berhad), DAP elected representatives, WAO (Women's Aid Organisation), KPWKM (Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development), Tzu Chi, and multiple Facebook community groups.
The response has been largely silence — or worse. When they shared their story in one Facebook group, a member publicly accused them of being scammers. The humiliation of being disbelieved, of having their suffering dismissed as a hoax, compounded an already unbearable situation.
"They write each message with full hope — that whoever receives it will be moved enough to come and see for themselves." — As described by those close to the couple
When Help Came — and Left Without Helping
On two separate occasions, people did show up at the door. A political party delegation visited. Officers from JKM (Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat) came. In both cases, the visits produced nothing of substance for the couple.
The political visitors focused their attention on the eldest male member of the household — an older man with an intellectual disability who also lives in the property. They interviewed him, posed for photographs with him, and uploaded the images to their personal Instagram accounts. They left without speaking meaningfully to the struggling couple or assessing the home's condition. The JKM officers similarly departed without any follow-up action or referral.
The couple felt not seen, but used — their home a backdrop for social media content, their needs invisible. To add to the distress in this already difficult living situation, the elderly man with the intellectual disability has on several occasions behaved inappropriately when the wife is present in the back garden — exposing himself deliberately. The wife has had no privacy and no recourse.
The Weight of Every Rainstorm
Most people in Malaysia welcome rain as relief from the heat. For this couple, rain triggers anxiety and a scramble for containers. Every shower is a reminder of how precarious their existence is — and how completely they depend on nature for the most basic human need.
The husband is ageing. The house is deteriorating around them. The inheritance dispute remains unresolved. And the months keep passing.
"Every time it rains, their hearts are heavy — they must rush to collect water just to survive another day." — Community observer
What They Are Asking For
They are not asking for wealth. They are asking for someone — a rescue team, a volunteer group, a welfare organisation with real authority — to come and witness what they are living through with their own eyes. To see the roof. To see the buckets. To understand that this is not an exaggeration.
They are profoundly grateful to Tzu Chi for the monthly food aid that has, by their own account, kept them alive. But food alone cannot repair a roof, restore water, reconnect electricity, or resolve the legal entanglement that traps them in this house.
Will Someone Come?
This couple in Melaka is not asking for charity. They are asking to be seen. If you are from a welfare organisation, a community rescue team, a legal aid body, or a credible volunteer network — they need a visit, not a form to fill in.
If you know someone in social welfare, community outreach, or humanitarian services in Melaka, please share this story. One visit could change everything.
#MelakaFamily #BantuRakyat #HumanitarianAid
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