KANGAR: The announcement on a RM50 increase in allowance for disabled people, both employed and unemployed, as well as their caregivers came as a pleasant surprise for Riyat Enson Abdullah.
The 58-year-old housewife said the additional RM50 announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak during the tabling of 2018 Budget today would help cover the expenses of essential items for her grandson who was born with cerebral palsy.
Since Haizal Iskandar Abdullah, 14, was bedridden, Riyad has no choice but to put on diapers for him as she and her husband could not carry him all the way from the living room to the bathroom.
"Haizal's mother will leave for work in the morning and be back by evening. In the meantime, there are only three of us at home and both my husband and I are not strong enough to carry him.
"We have no choice but to put on diapers for him and we spend quite a lot on diapers as he can only wear a specific brand due to his skin sensitivity.
"The allocation and incentives by the government for disabled people every year proves its concern for this group. For disabled people and their family members, every small gesture means a lot to us,"she said when met at her house in Jalan Kangar-Kaki Bukit .