‘I try to do my best’
Single father of three struggles to make ends meet
FIFTY-ONE-YEAR-OLD Pravin Kumar is a single father struggling to make ends meet for his two disabled sons and a seven-year-old daughter.
The Voivoi settlement, Legalega resident has been taking care of his wheelchair-bound children after losing his wife to breast cancer three months ago.
“I try to do my best,” he said. “After my wife passed away, I had to leave my work to take care of my sons.
“They need 24-hour care, so I had to be at home.”
He said 11-year-old Rynal and 13-yearold Pritesh suffer from a genetic condition called Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
“When they were born, they were normal healthy boys, but as they got older, they could not move their legs.
“From the age of nine, they’ve been in a wheelchair.”
He said he relied heavily on his wife to take care of their children while he went to work.
“When my wife started to get sick, she was also bedridden. I had to come home and take care of all of them until my wife passed.
“Since then, I’ve been looking after my sons and I can’t go anywhere without them.”
He said they got by with the little he earned from their son’s disability welfare assistance, but it was not enough to cater for all of their needs.
“It is a struggle.
“I’m not someone that will go around and beg for money because that is something we really need.
“But I try to look after my sons and make sure that they are healthy despite their disability.”
When my wife started to get sick, she was also bedridden. I had to come home and take care of all of them until my wife passed. Since then, I’ve been looking after my sons and I can’t go anywhere without them.
– Pravin Kumar