Infant’s sudden death at unlisted daycare centre in Selangor; grieving mother demands justice

 

HEARTLESSNESS in a heartless world.

That’s what seems to be the crux of the matter in the tragic case of a four-month-old infant at a daycare centre in Selangor.

In the event of such tragic news, the very least one would have expected was that it would be conveyed in person or at least with a phone call. Instead, the message was relayed via WhatsApp!

The tragedy occurred on Jan 3 when the mother dropped off her infant son who was alive and well with no signs of any illness or external discomfort at 9am at the nursery in Bandar Saujana Putra.

Alas, that would be the very last time she saw her son alive as she was later informed that her baby had suddenly shown no signs of life.

In widely circulated screenshots of WhatsApp messages, the mother claims that her son’s death was due to negligence on the part of the day care providers, specifically being understaffed. It is claimed that there were only two “teachers” looking after 25 children.

The police also confirmed that the daycare centre is unlicensed. The tragic event was shared on X by digital content provider mhmmdhsm (@mhmmdhsm).

The post which has been viewed over 1.5M times at the time of writing elicited plenty of feedback, not least on checking whether nurseries are registered with the relevant authorities.

The grieving mother went on to share that she and her husband were orphans and had nobody else except each other in the small family which is now one member short.

She had apparently gone through a difficult pregnancy but said the baby was determined to meet her and made it through the delivery despite challenging circumstances.

She reckoned that even if her son had to succumbed to “Sudden Infant Death”, he could have been saved if there was proper supervision by staff at the nursery.

Meanwhile, the police have opened an investigation under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2011 with statements from the daycare operator and staff duly taken but no arrests have been made so far.

The poster went on to say it was illogical that an active and healthy child would suddenly lapse into a state of lifelessness.

One netizen lamented that this was not a service in which corners could be cut. Doing so, could very well have tragic consequences.

One commenter gave other parents a checklist. Parents need to be vigilant and ensure all is in order before registering their kids at any daycare centre.

Some netizens pointed out that such cases seem to be too frequent with one urging the relevant authorities to act against errant daycare centres.

One netizen stated that there should be a law where CCTVs are mandatory at such nurseries to ensure that staff are providing the necessary care.

This tragic case highlights certain issues.

Firstly, economic reality means that in many households, both parents have to work, hence necessitating the sending to daycare centres.

The lower income group, in particular, have no choice but to send their children to daycare centres that are within their means. This usually means centres that are poorly staffed and cut corners to lower costs.

Secondly, the proliferation of unlicensed daycare centres needs to be halted simply because there can be no compromise in this issue. Child safety is not up for debate.

Last but not least, those who are guilty of flouting the law need to be severely punished. As one netizen succinctly put it, there is a special kind of hell awaiting those who are guilty of this sin. – Focus Malaysia