The Borneo Post (Sabah) - Leonard Alaza (Oct 9th 2005)

RE : ALL BLIND SINGER, ALFRED ASKS FOR IS ANOTHER CHANCE
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At the age of three, Perak born Alfred Ho suffered from a bout of measles that led him to go blind for the rest of his life. It was a very cruel blow to such a young life but he moved on, journeying in total darkness armed with nothing but the light of sheer determination and hope. After completeing his primary education in a school for the blind, he enrolled for vocational training in Kuala Lumpur and was trained as a telephone operator. Armed with skills, he entered the job market and managed to get a job as a telephone operator in Penang. His income, although small, was sufficient to get him through to the next pay day. And the next...and the next...and the next for the next ten years. Secure? Yes. Satisfied? Absolutely not. Although conditioned by blindness, Alfred, like most people, had big dreams. His passion was and still is, singing. And like all ambitious individuals, he wanted to live his dreams, even earning his bread and butter doing the thing closest to his heart.

His journey started rather cautiously though, singing in public events part time while keeping his job. He even took part in the "Bakat TV" in the 70's (later known as Bintang RTM) and sang his way into the semi-finals. But the thought of diving into it on a full-time basis did not come until the mid-80's. "I came to a point in my life that I decided to follow my dreams seriously. So I left my job and came to KL" he recalled during an interview with THE BORNEO POST prior to his charity concert here in Kota Kinabalu last week. That was when reality struck. He realised soon enough that the mainstream entertainment industry had no place for people like him. It was fine for them that he sang in charity shows or organized public events but not on a professional basis. He did actually manage to get a radio deejay job after much persistence but claimed that his employers were actually not sincere in hiring him. Eventually, he lost the job after "they made my life difficult" but later won a court battle against them. Already sentenced to a life of blindness, Alfred found himself groping in the dark for a singing break that would place him somewhere in the competetive industry. But he has yet to make it anywhere until today, about 20 years after he first turned a full time singer. "My experience is all about facing one rejection after another. The discrimination against people like me is very bad I tell you" lamented the 56-year old who plays the guitar as he sings. He even had to produce all his four "albums" by himself, as no recording label showed any interest in him. The "albums" contained not songs that he produced himself but those rarely played on the radio and sold whenever he was hired to do a public performance. The fees he gets from inconsistent stage performances - mostly charity dinners, have never been enough to see him through in a month. Many times he went through months without a singing job. During those times, he was forced to search for options, anything to pay the bills. "I applied for (ordinary) jobs but even then I was turned down. It was frustrating." On various occasions, out of desperation, he dared himself to approach political leaders for help but ended getting even more frustrated, even angry. "I came to one political party's office but the person in-charge arrogantly told me to go back to my (blind) association for help as he could not assist me....The society always say that they care for people like me. From my experience, I find that it is not true. If they were sincere, I would have already been given the chance to earn a living from my talents," he said. He did a earn a living from his talents alright... on the streets like other blind musicians. "I did it a couple of times, not because I wanted to but because I had no other choice. But if I could, then I would not have done it because I would only be degrading myself. People would say, "why would we pay so much to see you perform on stage, having paid far less to you when you were in the streets." "I don't mean to look down on other blind musicians who are earning their living as street performers. I just place a certain standard on myself and I always believe I deserve a better treatment. Not just me but all those people like me who have talents," he admitted.

Things went from bad to worse when he was behind in his instalment payments for the flat-house he bought during his financially "stable" days. His appeal to the bank for more time on grounds of his physical and financial condition was always not entertained. Life's pressure finally took a toll on him when he was diagnosed to have suffered from severe hypertension. But thankfully, time was on his side. He reached 55 and was able to withdraw his EPF savings from which he settled most of his dues plus interests. He is currently living with his wife Rufina, who is partially-blind. The couple have no children."How can I have children? I can hardly take care of myself." Rufina's small income as a part-time nurse is barely enough to meet their basic needs. Currently, Alfred has gone five months without any source of income. The little money he has left in his savings is fast drying up. He has to look for something to continue living. "All I'm asking for, is to be given a chance, that's all."