Taman Jurong Chwee Kueh Hawker, 83, Hospitalised For 4 Months After Contracting Dengue Fever
Fans of chwee kueh hawker Peng Ah Bah were dismayed to find that his longtime stall at Taman Jurong Food Centre had abruptly closed in March this year.
The 83-year-old was forced to make a snap decision to shut down his business after he came down with dengue fever. Speaking to 8days.sg, he recalls going to the doctor as he was feeling very unwell. “I was admitted into the hospital and the doctors said my condition was very dangerous. My body had a fluid build-up. They did a test and told me it was severe dengue fever,” he shares.
According to SingHealth, dengue fever is a viral disease borne by Aedes mosquitoes. Patients who suffer a severe form of it develop life-threatening symptoms like fluid accumulation and intense abdominal pain. Urgent medical attention is required.
In Ah Bah’s case, he ended up being hospitalised at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital for four months while he recuperated. He incurred a bill of around $7,000, which he says was fully covered by MediSave.
“I don’t even know how it happened. A mosquito bit me and my leg swelled, but I didn’t expect it to be so serious,” Ah Bah says. A kampong dweller in Changi back in the day, he was used to mosquitoes feasting on him. “I got bitten so many times, but nothing happened,” he laughs.
Tried to transfer his stall to his “disciple”
Although Ah Bah has since recovered from dengue fever, he still struggles with mobility. “I can walk for a short distance, but my legs will start swelling very badly. It’s not convenient for me to walk,” he says. These days, he is mostly homebound.
Over the years, Ah Bah had taught as many as “15 disciples” to make his chwee kueh (he also flew to London in 2014 at the invitation of the Singapore Government to showcase his specialty for Singapore Day).
When it was clear that he could not continue working, Ah Bah tried to transfer his stall’s ownership to one of his disciples. “I didn’t want to let go of my stall. I wanted to transfer it to my disciple. Many of them wanted the stall because I was doing good business there. But NEA said I [can’t] transfer [due to regulations], so I had to let it go,” he says.
Willing to teach chwee kueh-making for free
But Ah Bah doesn’t feel it’s a pity to give up his stall. “My disciples have opened stalls in Toa Payoh, Ang Mo Kio, Bedok and Bukit Timah. I told them not to follow me mindlessly. Do it your own way,” he says.
All his chwee kuehs, and that of his disciples, are made by hand. “No machines,” says Ah Bah. “It’s not that hard to make, but it’s a slower process. Mine has the old-school taste.”
Although he has effectively retired, Ah Bah is open to teaching people how to make chwee kueh for free. “No need for ang pow,” he affirms. The reason why he doesn’t want to charge a fee for teaching or sell his recipe, he says, is because he wants to “pay penance for the bad things I have done.”
Ah Bah explains that in his youth, he had worked in a slaughterhouse. “I slaughtered pigs, chickens, ducks, even turtles. I took too many lives. Now that I’m old, I teach people for free to redeem my sins,” he says.
Or maybe you could sell chwee kueh at home, we suggest. But Ah Bah is doubtful. He opines: “This kind of dangerous thing, I don’t dare to do. What if the authorities change their mind [about home-based businesses] tomorrow and I can’t sell chwee kueh anymore?”
