SINGAPORE: A man took to social media to ask his fellow Singaporeans: “How do you treat disabled folks who come up to you to buy their toys when you are eating? Imagine you are eating with clients, or extended family, or your first date…
Will you reject it?” the man asked on r/askSingapore on Monday (March 11).
The man also mentioned that, while he always felt guilty about rejecting these individuals, he still does so because “there are now too many scammers.”
He then asked whether there was a license he could see or any method to determine whether these people were actually disabled.
“Just politely say no and decline”
In the comments section, Singaporean Redditors suggested that the man politely decline the offer and then clarify to his client, family, or date that he does not support such causes, as many of them are frequently scams.
One individual said, “Just politely say no and decline. I think all of these street activities will stop once nobody gives or buys anything. This may sound heartless, but l would rather make donations or purchases (for social good causes) through a verified platform.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of cheats out there, and they won’t stop unless we do.”
Another added, “Why does it even matter if the seller were disabled or not?
If you’re not interested in what a salesperson is selling or unhappy with how/when they approached you, simply decline and continue with your meal.”
One individual also shared that he was a sign language interpreter, and whenever he got approached by these people, he would “start signing back to them.”
He said that he “caught a few fakes this way.”
Others remarked that these people may be part of syndicates, so he shouldn’t feel bad about refusing their products.
One individual said, “Don’t be deceived, they are part of a syndicate. I would tell them to get lost. Scammers have ruined things for the few real poor people who are trying to earn a living.”
Another person also shared a troubling experience, recounting that a scammer of this kind once approached him and his acquaintances during a group lunch. He mentioned that after they rejected the offer, the individual didn’t take it well and caused a scene in public.
He added, “He refused to leave the premises and started to say he was doing it as a form of work and it’s a mere 5$ for an item , why can’t we afford it. He started to get louder and louder making a scene. To prevent further escalation, we gave him 10$ and refused the item and asked him to leave.
Had a 2nd encounter with him and recognised his face, I told my peers to leave the premise immediately.”
Sign Language Interpreter’s Insight
Last year, the topic of salespeople with hearing impairment was brought up in the same subreddit group, r/askSingapore. And a sign language interpreter who happened to read that post shared his insight about their circumstances.
The interpreter said that the majority of these salespeople were indeed with hearing impairment, adding that those who were Asian came from China. Those who had an ‘Ang Moh’ appearance were usually European.
He explained that he knew the Asians weren’t from Singapore since they didn’t exactly use “American Sign Language or Singapore Sign Language.”
He also revealed that some hearing-impaired people he met admitted they were part of a syndicate sending them to wealthy countries to sell products.
Despite being part of such operations, the interpreter noted that these individuals were generally good-natured and were being exploited.
They had strict sales quotas to meet but managed to earn enough through their sales to support themselves and their families back home.
Although the interpreter didn’t support these syndicates, he believed in helping the hearing-impaired individuals and occasionally bought them a meal or drink when he had time.
Read also: SG salesperson wished he had “American accent” because local accent is “low class”