Determined Mamat directs traffic and rules the road

Determined Mamat directs traffic and rules the road

By Emmy Fitri

JAKARTA (JP): Some may call the 57-year-old Mamat Gayo
"disabled", others "physically challenged".

However the abnormal growth in his hands and feet have not
disabled his spirit for life in the daily challenge of helping
direct traffic near the Harapan Bunda Hospital on busy Jl. Raya
Bogor in East Jakarta.

Standing at the middle of a U-turn, blowing his moldy red
whistle, he assists motorists who want to enter or exit the
hospital, the Kramat Jati central market in front of the hospital
or vehicles just making a U-turn.

"This job has given my family life, and right now I don't know
any other job that I'm able to do," said the father of two
teenagers -- 16-year-old Nani and 14-year-old Edi Saputra -- and
a recently adopted four-year-old daughter.

After moving from one minor job to another, Mamat finally
found his "niche" directing traffic in 1989.

Born in Takengon, Aceh, Mamat had a tough childhood full of
neglect. He forced himself to seek his own way and left his
hometown for Medan, North Sumatra, at the age of 16.

There he was fortunate to be adopted and sent to a religious
Moslem school.

Despite his physical impediments, Mamat never lost his spirit
and quickly did various odd jobs at a number of cities before
finally ending up looking for fortune in Jakarta.

"My first job was as a newspaper seller. After that I spent
years as a co-driver of a minivan before a civilian security
guard (hansip) offered me to help him direct traffic around
here," Mamat recalls.

That particular stretch of Jl. Raya Bogor had not been
"occupied" by anyone to help direct the increasingly busy
traffic.

The security guard was increasingly overwhelmed as more and
more drivers asked him to help park their cars.

Mamat came at just the right time and quickly became a very
able assistant.

After several months Mamat was left alone to handle the area.

The harsh realities of street life soon set in as the hospital
and market began to get busier, and so did the menace.

Local hoodlums, mostly from the central market vying the site,
began intimidating Mamat.

"At that time, I wasn't wearing a uniform. I wore a yellow T-
shirt distributed by the city administration which read, 'Ingin
Lancar, Antri,' (Queue please).

"None of the hoodlums respected me but I wasn't fazed by them
at all," he said full of confidence.

The hoodlums often tried to extort money and asked for
cigarettes from Mamat.

"I challenged them, but none of them dared to fight me," he
recounted.

After several years of hardwork, Mamat's labor began to bear
fruit as people began to notice his dedication despite his
shortcomings.

In 1994 he was invited and listed by the East Jakarta traffic
police as an official "police volunteer."

They gave him a special identification card along with an
official letter assigning him to maintain traffic along the
street.

From that time on he began wearing a uniform similar to that
of a security guard but with different badges.

"I bought my uniform from a another security guard and the
badges from the military equipment shop in Kramat Jati market".

These days Mamat does not have to constantly stand by the
street, and only keeps a distant watch as he is now able to
employ his own assistants. The boys are teenagers who dropped out
of school.

Mamat works on the street about three-hours a day, and lets
his six teenage assistants do most of the rest.

"I used to have to work until late at night to earn enough
money, while at the same time I realized that this road should be
watched, as the street is always busy with vehicles coming in and
out either from the hospital or from the market...that's one of
the reasons I took on the assistants," said Mamat who stands less
than one-meter tall.

Despite having six assistants, Mamat claims he still receives
between Rp 10,000 (US$1.4) and Rp 15,000 a day from money
collected from parking and other tips from drivers.

As he recounted his life experiences, it was clear that Mamat
is a proud man who recognizes that he probably has to put in that
little more extra effort because of his physique.

He remarked that past experiences had hardened him and taught
him not to give up easily.

"I was ignored by my family, moreover my father was very
ashamed to admit that I was his son," he commented.

It is probably the desire to give his children a better
childhood than he experienced which has helped motivate him.

Married to a housemaid, Tati Sumiyati, Mamat's family resides
in a rented two-room house in a small alley in East Jakarta.

Recently he adopted a daughter, four-year-old Dela, who has
kept the household full of joy.

"I felt sorry for the girl's parents. They are so poor living
in village in West Java," he recalled his decision to adopt.

One of the major benefits of having assistants is that Mamat
can spend more time with his family.

"I enjoy this job now because I can spend most of my time at
home with my wife and children. We may be poor, but my wife can
manage the little money I give her each day," he said.

Many have been touched by Mamat's hard work. He once received
an honorary "award" from the then city police chief Maj. Gen.
Hamami Nata.

"I received Rp 1 million from Pak Hamami and a package of
sembako (basic commodities) from the chief of the East Jakarta
traffic police."

Quite reluctant and thankful with what he has, Mamat said he
enjoys his life and really has no big dreams about a life of
luxury.

For the moment, he says, he is content.

So what else does Mamat desire or aim for in life? He doesn't
want his son to follow him and become a parking attendant.

"...that's why I send him to school. To have a job like mine
isn't difficult. I'm crippled and I can do this, so he has to
have a better job."