An incident in Singapore sparked a public conversation about the ethics of charity and the actions of a beggar woman, according to Shin Min Daily News.
A local individual, upon encountering a woman asking for money at a shopping mall, sympathetically offered her SGD 4 (around RM15) for food.
Begging for money to buy food
To their surprise, the woman then proceeded to a nearby upscale café, where she spent SGD 8.5 (around RM30) on a drink and cake.
The woman, a 66-year-old former receptionist, justified her actions by stating that she sees nothing wrong in spending the money at a café, asserting she didn’t deceive anyone.
Struggling financially, she began begging at the mall last year due to her husband’s stinginess, which left her with less than SGD 10 a day.
She revealed her difficult family situation, with a strained relationship with her accomplished daughter and a son with autism who is currently homeless.
Witnesses at the mall, including a 39-year-old employee of a dessert shop, recognized the woman but were unaware of her begging activities.
They noted that she often appeared to be wearing makeup but had never seen her asking for money or visiting their shop.
