Tower Transit staff who saved colleague, 74, and commuters in Yishun say: 'We're not heroes'
Anger coursed through Mr Muhammad Zaki Selamat when he learnt that his elderly female colleague had been punched.
The Tower Transit bus captain, 42, was on his break at Yishun Integrated Transport Hub with interchange supervisor Mr Mohd Faisal Zakaria, 41, on the morning of Jan 19 when they were informed about the assault.
Mr Zaki told Stomp: "I thought, 'Wah, somebody hit our staff?' We already feel so much pressure in our jobs and now you still want to beat us."
Together, the pair went to check on Ms Ong Emin, 74, who pointed out her assailant.
'It was like Genting Highlands'
"He was seated and said, 'What? Come lah, come lah,'" recounted Mr Zaki in a Jan 27 interview with Stomp.
The two of them approached the man cautiously — only for him to light a cigarette. They also noted that he looked "totally off" despite being dressed in a blazer and tie.
"He had already whacked our colleague, so we felt that this guy had nothing to lose," Mr Zaki said, adding that the man was also hurling profanities.
"But then, he took a step back and started to retreat all the way to Mr Teh Tarik Express. He went inside and I was like, 'Eh? What's going on?'
"Straightaway, he grabbed a fire extinguisher from the side and started to squat down. He then pulled the pin and started discharging the extinguisher. It became like Genting Highlands."
Mr Faisal and Mr Zaki grew increasingly concerned as the man starting spraying the fire extinguisher at other commuters in the interchange.
During this time, a passer-by stayed behind with Ms Ong and helped to call the police. Mr Zaki went to assist them.
Meanwhile, Mr Faisal tailed the man all the way to Northpoint City, where the latter got into an altercation with a shopper.
"We were on the first floor of the mall and the man was still spraying.
"One guy asked him, 'What are you doing?!' and got sprayed in the face. The guy shouted and got sprayed at again, until his body was all white," added Mr Faisal, who was worried a fight would break out.
The man continued "swinging" the fire extinguisher around, before flinging it away.
Mr Faisal immediately jumped into action. He caught the extinguisher and grabbed onto the man's hand to restrain him.
He was later joined by Mr Zaki and the police.
In response to a Stomp query, the police said they received a call for assistance at 920 Yishun Avenue 2 at about 9.30am.
"A 58-year-old man was arrested for public nuisance and unsound mind. He is also being investigated for voluntarily causing hurt and mischief," the police told Stomp, adding that investigations are ongoing.
'Society is deteriorating'
Mr Zaki, who has been in the industry since 2019, said he has observed an increase in such acts of aggression while on the job. Majority involve disputes between commuters, though public transport staff occasionally bear the wrath, too.
He shared: "It's a gradual and scary thing. Last time, such things seldom happen. Then it became often. Now, it's a lot. People are triggered by the littlest things.
"We feel like Singapore is still a safe place to a certain level. But what I can see is that society is deteriorating. People have become very ignorant and self-entitled."
The pair appealed to commuters for more respect and empathy, with Mr Zaki explaining: "We come to work not to kena scolded, we come to work not to kena profanities. We exist. Bus captains are humans, too.
"People don't really care about who is driving, but imagine how many lives we are responsible for. When something happens, every finger points at you. We are always at the mercy of many things, such as traffic and inevitable delays, and under scrutiny by netizens."
Nevertheless, the two men love their jobs despite the pressures and challenges that come with it.
"We find it very fulfilling, and at Tower Transit, there's an extra touch of warmth because they call us by our names instead of staff numbers," said Mr Zaki.
Besides gaining recognition from Tower Transit and being presented with Stomp Goody Bags, Mr Faisal and Mr Zaki have also received a commendation from the police.
Asked how it feels to be in the limelight, Mr Zaki told Stomp: "Paiseh is the correct word. Such things have happened so many times, it's just that they were not reported. We didn't realise we had been photographed this time."
The pair said they have been teased by colleagues about being 'heroes' — a label that they shrug off.
"What we did that day is part of our jobs. If not for us, then who? We are obligated to act because we wear the uniform," said Mr Zaki, who did not want the assailant to flee before police arrived.
"We are typically the first in line before we involve the police or ambulance, which makes us feel much closer to the community. We had to do something. Cannot be we just look, especially since our colleague already kena punched.
"It's not because we are heroes. It's because it's our job to serve the community."
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