Cerita Maid Aku dan Isteri Penghulu Yang Terlampau..

My maid has been telling me that she would want to have a one month off toward end of the year. So it puzzled us when she asked to go back in May. I mean, my EDD is in May, it is the most important month of the year, why leave us? But we gave her the benefit of doubt when she said that there were troubles at home. She also had stopped asking me whether she’ll get a payrise once the new baby is born.
Her flight back here was on June 2nd. Two days before that she called up saying that she wouldn’t be coming back since the husband has just been hospitalized. We gulped the news in. I was still hoping and berangan that all these are just dreams and she’ll be on that flight coming back. At last we allowed her another two weeks leave.
A week after that, when we know that the husband has been discharged, we wanted to call her up to talk about the flight arrangement. We couldn’t get her and several times, the husband said she was out.
I was napping around 4 yesterday when she called me up. Crying. I really thought the husband is dead. So dengan perasaan sedihnya aku bertanya whether the husband is okay. She said okay. Then she said she is already here in Malaysia. That she is working with someone who has loaned her money (of RM2,500). I worried that she borrowed monies from along and she is forced to work in a ‘bad place’. You keje dengan China ke? You keje tempat tak elok ke? Diorang pukul you ke? Are you okay? Itulah ayat ayat kerisauan seorang employer terhadap maidnya.
Then she said a neighbor of mine. That neighbor of mine is the wife of the pengerusi persatuan penduduk my section, kira macam penghulu. My maid was sent to her daughter in Cheras.
I was like, what? Bukannya neighbor aku tu tak Nampak I was carrying this bump in my tummy, and know that I could deliver any time. With a little baby and another two kids, I would greatly need the maid’s help around. And she does what? Steal my maid away to be given to her daughter who apparently is NOT pregnant.
My maid I think was feeling very very guilty to me, compounded to the fact that her Cheras employer doesn’t allow her to mix around with the persatuan bibik bibik di taman itu, seperti aku yang baik hati ini. She confessed everything to me but her story kept changing. I didn’t believe 100% of her story but I didn’t have to listen more to know the real truth.
My neighbor, yang patutnya menjadi the most respected elderly, KakPuteri (bukan nama sebenar) had lured her into borrowing monies from her, persuaded my desperate-for-money maid to go back in May, coming back here and work for her daughter. They knew very well that it was the Man’s name in the Permit to Work yang laki aku baru renew few months ago and will be valid until end of the year.
Yang maid aku pun bodoh, tak de saving nak balik buat ape? What to eat there? Aku la macam orang bodoh hari tu advancekan gaji dia satu bulan supaya she has some monies to spare. Idiot, rupa rupanya she had RM2,500 to spend and berjoli sakan while me here, while eating any good meal, teringat ingat lah ape yang dia makan agaknya kat kampong Indon tu.. The RM2,500 was given in return that my maid, upon her return must first lie to us saying that she cannot come back, second call KakPuteri to go and pick her up dekat LCCT (return ticket booked by us tapi seb baik guna duit my maid) and three go to work at KakPuteri’s daughter’s house. After few days, finding out that the daughter is not as kind as me, (uwek), dia sudah rasa bersalah, calling me back menangis nangis. I accepted her back, for the sake of the kids (and ketidaktahan melihat unwashed dishes in the sink and unironed shirts). She confronted the new employer, who then conveniently chased her away from the house, and took a cab to Bangi.
After she is safely home with us, lots of calls coming in. Apparently KakPUteri wants her monies back. Dekat phone aku pun there were like three missed calls from an unknown numbers. I didn’t pick up. Strategizing with the Man on what to say. We decided to put on hold any action until this weekend. I mean, we were cheated and were so much in anger, any action done can damage the relationship and peace of the neighborhood.
The next day, KakPuteri came to see me. Tak bagi salam, terus masuk pagar rumah aku. She called out my maid, scolding her not picking up the phone. Pastu , eh ini lagi best kalau aku buat script untuk tatapan korang. Macam ni eh;

Me: Kenapa KakPuteri?

Her: tak de le, akak nak duit akak balik.

Me: Kakputeri pun tahu mana la bibik saya ada duit banyak itu. Gaji dia pun atas sikit dari RM500. RM500 je lah dia boleh bayar kat akak skrg ni.

Her: Abih tu, kalau dia tak boleh bayar, kenapa dia pinjam duit akak dulu?

Me: (innocently, oh my face must have looked so sweet at that time) La.. abih tu , kenapa Kakputeri bagi dia pinjam banyak tu skali?

Her: (Terkedu) dah lah. Yang dah lepas kakputeri tak mau cakap dah..
(aku menjemputnya masuk di kala ini, dan duduk di depan tv sambil Anna menonton SnowWhite bab Snow White suruh the dwarfs pergi basuh tangan)

Her: Kamu tak boleh ke bayarkan untuk dia?

Me: (in my head, ‘bukan aku yang berhutang ngan kau, silly’, tetapi di mulut, yang terkeluar adalah: ) saya dan suami dah berbincang, kami tak de ape nak pegang dia kalau bayarkan penuh. Kami berbincang, jalan terbaik potong gaji dia tiap tiap bulan. 29th tiap tiap bulan dia dapat gaji, kami akan bagi dia cash untuk dia bayar kakputeri. RM500 sebulan, 5 bulan habis lah hutang dia kat kakputeri.

Her: Mana boleh. AKak bagi dia penuh, dia bayar bulan bulan.

Me: Akak boleh charge interest pun kalau akak nak. (was about to suggest klibor rate at the day of negotiation, ataupun bank Negara rate, tak pun maybank rate)

Her: Eih tak de le akak nak charge charge bunga ni. Berdosa. Kamu takkan tak de duit nak bayarkan dia? Akak nak pakai duit ni bulan ni. RM1000 pun jadilah.

Me: Kalau saya ada duit pun saya tak kan bayar kak. Apa saya nak pegang dia lepas ni? Kalau saya bayarkan, esok dia lari macammana?

Her: Kamu pegang le passport dia.

Me: La. Passport tu, kaalu dia nak lari, dia lari je tinggalkan passport dia. Nak nak kalau ada orang memang dah nak gajikan dia. (cuba untuk tidak menjadi cynical, tetapi dia tetap mati kering tidak mengakui kesalahannya… aduhai geramnya saya)

Her: Itule kamu, gaji tu rendah sangat . Dia dah dua tahun tu, boring la tu kalau gaji rendah.

Me: Nak buat camne kakputeri, itu je yang saya mampu gajikan dia. (at this time I was paying her RM550 per month, dengan janji nak naikkan gaji bila baby baru ada). Kalau dia dapat offer lagi bagus, saya tak boleh nak halaang dia pergi. Cuma kena cakap le kat saya kan, sebab dalam passport tu nama husband saya tertulis sebagai employer. Ada enam bulan lagi permit dia tu nak tamat. Apa apa jadi kat dia, husband saya kena bertanggungjawab.

Her: (Diam. Tidak mampu berkata ape)

Me: Kami kena ada cash kakputeri. ANak saya baru tiga minggu. Dua orang lagi kakak ngan abang tu kecik lagi, tak leh kalau tak ada maid. Kalau maid saya lari (masih cuba untuk tidak menjadi cynical dikala ini, oh aku orang yang baik uwek!), kalau maid saya lari lagi, memula kami kena pergi immigration nak apply maid baru, kena bayar denda RM2,500 .. pastu nak apply yang baru mau lima enam ribu abiss, pastu bukan waktu tu jugak boleh dapat, bebudak ni kena la antar nursery sana day care sini, dah berapa ratus dah abis.

Her: (Long silence). Iye, iye, kakputeri tahu semua process process tu. (dalam hati aku, dah tahu process apapasal tak apply maid ikut tatacara yang betul, nak pakai ambik je maid aku yang permitnye masih valid). Takkan Rm1000 pun kamu tak de?

Me: Kak Puteri, kalau saya ada pun, saya tak boleh nak bayarkan.. (tersenyum panjang, tanda menghormati)

Her: Tak de le. Kita ni kumpul duit , masuk dalam saving account, tetiba je hilang macam tu saja.

Me: Ha’ah kakputeri. Saya paham. Kita kerja teruk teruk , balik rumah malam baru jumpa anak, kumpul duit, tetiba je sedebuk hilang gitu je kan duit kita. Masa nak ambik dia dulu pun 4 5 ribu jugak hilang macam tu je. Hujung hujung tahun nak renew permit dia dekat seribu ha habis… sedebuk je, kumpul bulan bulan, hilang macam tu je kan.. saya paham kakputeri (abih tu, kau senang senang nak ambik maid aku tak paham paham lagi?!)

Her: (masih diam)

Me: Saya minta maaf lah mende ni jadi kat kakputeri. Mesti menyusahkan kakputeri, kan. (kau tu yang lagi banyak nak menyusahkan aku). Saya dengan suami pun tak tahu macammana nak tolong kakputeri. Semalam kami dah Tanya pendapat immigration, police semua. Indonesian embassy je masih belum kami Tanya pendapat. Nanti saya nak tanyakan lawyer saya yang based dia kat Jakarta nanti, ape nak buat. Perlu ke nak lodge report supaya ada bukti dia pernah lari? Kami ingat sabtu ni lah nak gi jumpa kak puteri dan cikgubedul (bukan nama sebenar) nak explain yang maid kami memang tak de duit banyak gitu nak bayar. Yang mampu dia bayar bulan bulan je..

Her: Tak payah. Cikgubedul kata dari dulu dia tak nak masuk campur hal ni.

Her: Takkan Rm1000 pun kamu tak boleh bayar.

Me: (senyum).

Her: Okaylah kak puteri balik dulu. Kamu bersiap ni nak gi mana?

Me: Oh nak gi kedai depan jap beli mee kuning, sat gi tengahari lawyer Indonesia tu nak dataang, takde pe nak jamu.

Her: (keluar rumah aku lepas salam ngan maklagn aku)

I tot I missed out all the fun negotiating at work, but this is indeed, much fun! Hahaha… My maid came running to me after that, I just told her that if she needs to go for a better offer, I understand, but please inform us earlier. Sian anak anak aku. Berdrama kejap lah aku. Dia pun menangis nangis, si ajin and yati akan cakap ini air mata crocodile.
For now, I’m having fun leaving the dishes unwashed in the sink. But I know that trust I must not to this maid of mine.
Kepada Allah aku berserah, Kau maha Penentu, pada tangan Kau aku serahkan nasib anak anak aku dan harta bende aku. Maka peliharalah anak-anak aku dan bumbung tempat kami berteduh. Sesungguhnya kau lah maha Memelihara. Itu memang doa aku pagi pagi masa pandang muka maid aku tutupkan pagar masa aku start kereta nak pi kerja. Itulah doa aku yang akan dataang.

So, ape pendapat korang?