IT has been laid bare before the public’s eyes identity of the couple who made headlines for the wrong or rather ’shamest’ of reason at the Penang Batu Gantung Chinese Cemetery on March 22 a.k.a. the second day of Hari Raya.
Earlier today (March 26), M. Jegathesan, 58, and Halila Abu Bakar, 37, pleaded guilty to committing the8r much-viralled graveyard rendezvous at George Town’s Magistrates Court, hence effectively making it a 1Malaysia affair considering the venue.
Magistrate Nadratun Naim Mohd Saidi sentenced both of them to 12 months’ imprisonment under Section 377D of the Penal Code for gross indecency in a public place (supposedly a secluded spot but the timing somehow coincided with the busy Cheng Beng a.k.a. All Souls Day season).
In mitigation, lawyer R. Purantharan who represented both the accused, sought a lighter sentence.
According to him, Halila was unemployed, single and supported by her family while Jegathesan worked as a security guard earning RM1,800/month and was the sole breadwinner for his wife who had suffered a stroke and their two children.
Apparently, the case goes beyond “dirty old man, get a motel if you can’t control your lust”, “show respect to the dead” or even the fact that “bad apples exist in every community”.
On the PenangToday Community Facebook page, a former sergeant major with the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) painted the picture of a societal ill as he berated the man for having taken advantage “of a mentally retarded girl who has gum sniffing addiction and living on alms given by food givers”.
“Her younger sister has the same problem,” he revealed in response to a lament by a commenter that the couple “should have chosen a secluded beach to satisfy their lust”.
“What a price to pay! It cost M. Jegathesan his job; heaven knows what will happen to his wife and children,” chided the lady commenter.
“As for the woman, she has nothing to lose except her moral standards. What a price to pay for a few minutes of thrill.”
Delving further on the fate of the woman, the ex-cop regretted that the case was not given “thorough examination but rather came to an early conclusion”.
He went on to share that both the woman’s parents have both passed on while recalling her mental woes “as she and her siblings are always seen sniffing synthetic gum in small plastic bags since young”.
“They were then living in the Kampung Melayu vicinity when I was the deputy OCS (officer in-charge of station) in the area whereby I had previously detained them,” he recounted.
“At present, the woman and her sister is still addicted to gum sniffing and are living on alms of Rifle Range flats’ residents. There are many Malay NGOs out there which could and should step in to help in this type of situation.”
Well, sometimes it is easy to point finger or poke fun at others without knowing what life trauma they are going through, especially the underprivileged segment of the society.
The lingering question should be one on two individuals under duress circumstances who desperately require societal empathy rather than being branded as a shame to their communities.
Moral values aside, public reaction should be like what this educator sought instead of condemnation: “Hello, what’s going to happen to the innocent poor wife and two children. Have the Courts or the system thought about it???? Is the government going to support the poor family?????”
- Focus Malaysia
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