Help Budy Go Back 2 School!

NOTE: GoGetFunding takes a percentage cut of the funds we raise. This is why we've had to calculate and include the platform fees into our fundraising goal. Thus, to avoid unnecessary costs, we strongly encourage you to donate to Budy's PayNow or PayLah directly. Please see our image reel, or scroll to the bottom of this text description, to find the QR codes. (To prevent scams, please only transfer to the QR codes attached on this GoGetFunding page. Thank you.) We are keeping tally of these direct transfers here: https://tinyurl.com/budydirect.

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Getting to know Budy:

Budy is a 26-year-old Singaporean man from a working-class background. Budy is currently facing housing and financial insecurity, which resulted in his expulsion from university. Coming from an extremely precarious background in which his father had a gambling addiction and his mother was in poor health, Budy did not have a good start in life. He grew up in a cheap rental flat in the red light district of Geylang for the first 23 years of his life.

Since primary school, Budy had to help out his mother’s home-based business by delivering home-cooked food on foot within the premises of Geylang. As both his parents did not complete primary school nor its equivalent, they had limited literacy in English, which resulted in Budy having to read official documents and school consent forms to them at a young age. He did not have a close figure in his life to model after in terms of academic achievements or job security either, and imagined that his life trajectory would be the same as his parents.

Despite this, Budy managed to work his way up from the Normal Technical EM3 stream in secondary school… all the way to being accepted into Nanyang Technology University (NTU)! Budy takes pride in this accomplishment of his as less than 5% of students from Normal Technical will ever make it to a local university, not to mention his low-income background and inability to afford private tuition.

Budy has done his best against all odds to create a life and future for himself where he would not merely survive, but hopefully thrive and triumph. He has come so far and so close, but right now, he needs YOUR help and support.

Budy's story so far:

Budy has a keen interest in history and the arts. Budy’s work with social service organisations as well as his constant excellence in and fierce dedication to his academic pursuits were recognised and rewarded by Singapore Polytechnic, where he graduated with a diploma in Applied Drama and Psychology.

Budy is known for having a big and gentle but tough heart. He is well-loved by his friends and even teachers as he still keeps in touch with them, including some from as early as secondary school.

He has had no other choice but to develop survival skills, such as resilience, resourcefulness, adaptability and goal-orientedness: his rough upbringing and class position have placed many obstacles in his path, and in order to create a better life for himself and those he cares about, Budy has had to juggle a lot. He has been forced to grow up quickly. Living precariously offers little room for rest, and there is a very narrow margin of error – because failing or making mistakes can result in terrible and compounding consequences. As such, breaking out of the poverty cycle for Budy cannot solely be his responsibility; these issues are structural. For instance, when Budy’s mother suffered a stroke in 2017, this resulted in even greater precarity as she is a Permanent Resident. Budy has been struggling with depression and has been on antidepressants for 5 years, and we note that as much as he is trying to take care of himself, he cannot keep finding his way out of crisis after crisis, as these are tied to structural issues.

Nonetheless, Budy’s school life has been filled with accomplishments that would have been commendable for anyone; for someone facing such dire circumstances, they are extraordinary. Mainly, Budy:

• was awarded the SP Arts Award and CCA Gold with Honors certificate for his contributions to the Singapore Polytechnic art scene;
• secured a place in and went on an exchange trip to Japan in 2017;
• was a shortlisted valedictorian for his commencement session;
• performed in a theater production for Singapore Heritage Festival 2018;
• crowdfunded for the medical bills of a breast cancer patient, a former rental flat resident’s foreign wife (caregiver) when an NGO couldn’t help due to red tapes back in 2019;
• was part of the National Museum of Singapore’s youth panel in 2021 & curated programmes for the month of September 2021;
• mentored a double bassist with no music background while in SP symphonic band, who now play for many string ensemble and symphonic bands out of passion; and
• was shortlisted for the Lim Kim San Memorial scholarship back in May 2022.

Thanks to his hard work, intelligence and resulting great academic performance over many years, Budy was admitted into NTU’s undergraduate history programme in 2020. Budy was overjoyed upon receiving this news! He has aspired for an undergraduate degree for years, hoping this qualification could finally be his key to class mobility. Moreover, his history major genuinely suits his personal interests and capabilities: Budy has always been a history buff. As a result, getting accepted into university meant a lot to Budy and he was excited for this promising prospect. However…

Budy’s precarity impacted his time in NTU:

Budy has faced severe financial precarity throughout his life and might not be able to continue his education due to these roadblocks. Budy’s late abusive father had a gambling addiction, and Budy’s widowed mother suffered a stroke in 2017, pushing him and the family into greater precarity. Even though Budy himself is Singaporean, his mother is a Permanent Resident. Hence, the cost of medical expenses drained his family’s savings, and Budy had to juggle caregiving responsibilities with everything else going on in his life, in the midst of housing insecurity and/or constant stress about how to pay for rent.

Throughout his time at NTU, Budy was unable to participate in the module registration exercise for three consecutive semesters – because he had difficulty affording the pending school tuition fees, even after taking a loan to offset most of it.

Given his financial and housing precarity, Budy has not been able to build emergency funds for unforeseen events. For instance, during his finals period in November 2021, Budy’s loaned laptop abruptly broke down on him. Budy was literally unable to afford and obtain a new laptop on time, resulting in him missing essay deadlines. The consequence was poor academic performance.

Even after doing his due diligence in providing necessary paperwork to prove that he does not have a local residence and is dependent on NTU hall for housing, Budy was evicted during the July 2021 NTU mass hall eviction. The whole period of appealing to keep his hall room took a huge toll on his mental health. He could not take a leave of absence from school either as it would mean having to vacate his hall, his only roof over his head – thus he had no choice but to keep pushing through his education.

Budy was subsequently expelled in July 2022 due to poor academic performances, despite his professors being keenly aware of his financial and housing difficulties. His appeal with the help of MP Louis Ng was unsuccessful.

All in all, these events have caused major distress to Budy and he has been nonconsensually institutionalized in IMH.

Budy was shortlisted for the Lim Kim San Memorial scholarship back in May 2022, but was unsuccessful due to “competitive pool of applicants”. Budy was advised to work and save up, despite the difficulty in doing so given high and prohibitive rental prices.

Budy needs your help and support for his tuition fees, loans, daily expenses and emergency funds, so that he can resume his education!

Budy wants to continue pursuing a university education. Since his expulsion, Budy has been homeless and couch-surfing from one friend’s place to another. He is currently working part-time as a research assistant to a lecturer for a project funded by NHB and is slowly picking up tutoring assignments.

We – friends of Budy – have come together to create this fundraiser because we care about Budy. We are working to help put Budy, who did not have a good start in life and started from the bottom of the education system, back in university. Higher education is already made inaccessible to low income families and despite jumping many hurdles on his own, he cannot overcome this without our help.

Budy’s circumstances demand sheer resilience and resourcefulness beyond what is humanly possible. He has had to navigate complex bureaucratic systems on his own every single day just to stay afloat, and even then barely so. Alas, it is still not enough. Despite his unending resilience, tenacious hard work, and proven merits, Budy continues to face financial challenges in education and life.

Budy needs your assistance in order to resume his promising academic journey. The amount we are hoping to raise for Budy is $66,943.60. This will ensure he can complete the education he’s worked so hard for, pay back existing loans that forced him to withdraw from school earlier, and finance his shelter until university.

Any amount you are willing to give will be invaluable to us and Budy – and even if you cannot donate, you can still help us by spreading word about this fundraiser!

Breakdown of funds:

• $32,800 for his tuition fees ($8,200 tuition fee per academic year x 4 years)
• $14,600 outstanding tuition debt to bank
• $2,000 for laptop loan owed to NTU
• $12,000 for 1 year worth of rent ($1,000 x 12 months OR emergency funds should he be able to find a free accommodation)
• $5,543.60 to cover GoGetFunding's platform + card processing fee (7.4% of the original $61,400 + estimated extra $1,000 for each transaction service fee)

FAQ

1) Is Budy Singaporean?

Yes, Budy was born in Singapore. His late father is local and his mother is an Indonesian PR.

2) Where is his mother? Why can’t she help, since Budy is facing housing issues?

Budy’s mother moved back to Indonesia for good after suffering a stroke in 2017, as they could not afford her medical bills here.

3) Does Budy have any living family members in Singapore?

Budy only has an older brother in Singapore, who is financially stretched himself, as his salary is just sufficient to cover his own rent and living expenses, as well as their mother’s medical bills back in Indonesia. Budy and his brother have no relatives in Singapore.

4) Can Budy turn to his maternal relatives in Indonesia for financial assistance?

No, they are not in the position to provide support. Moreover, Budy’s mother is the eldest sibling in her family and has been remitting back to her family and relatives out of filial piety for years – so the financial weight lies disproportionately on her too.

5) Why is there outstanding tuition debt owed to the bank?

Budy was expelled after his 2nd year in NTU, but his tuition loans were not forgiven. He now has to pay back the debt.

6) Did Budy receive MOE Bursary when he was studying in uni?

Yes, Budy received the highest tier bursary. It was just enough to cover his hall rent and miscellaneous fees. He struggled with living expenses and with being able to afford the ~$500 tuition fees every semester (after 90% deduction from tuition loan).

7) Did Budy go to see the MP for help?

Yes, Budy has seen two MPs on two separate occasions. Firstly, in November 2020, Budy turned to his GRC MP Tan Chuan-Jin. MP Tan helped Budy write a letter to NTU on Budy’s behalf to request for an S/U (i.e. a pass/fail) semester in November 2020, but nothing materialised of this. Beyond this, MP Tan could not help with much, even with scholarship, as “it is merit-based”. Secondly, in June 2022, Budy turned to MP Louis Ng, who helped Budy by writing an appeal letter to NTU Academic Services Office to reinstate Budy as a student. The appeal was unsuccessful.

8) Does Budy have any physical/mental illness?

Yes, Budy has been struggling with depression and has been seeking treatment at IMH since 2017, mainly due to his financial and housing difficulties. His biggest health struggles are frequent night sweats – a side effect of his antidepressants. Unfortunately, there are no other alternatives to his current medications; Budy and his psychiatrist have already tried other types of antidepressants and nerve-pain medications. The reality is that Budy’s issues are real, tangible, material and structural. He cannot medicate and meditate his way out of precarity.

9) What is Budy doing right now to improve his circumstances?

Budy is currently working as a part-time Research Assistant to a SUSS lecturer for a history-related project funded by the National Heritage Board (NHB). He is looking into picking up more tutoring assignments too.

10) Are there any other ways to support Budy, besides monetarily?

Yes, you can spread the word about this fundraiser!

Besides this, Budy is searching for a safe place to stay in Singapore till August 2023, so a spare room would be great. Please note that Budy really needs his own private space, i.e. room-sharing (which he has done previously) is no longer a suitable option for his mental health.

11) Where can I read more about Budy’s situation?

• You can read about NTU’s 2021 housing crisis (which impacted Budy) here: https://mothership.sg/2021/07/ntu-students-no-acco....
• You can also read about Budy’s dire circumstances as mentioned in Shinmin Newspaper here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_SCfIUu4XTnQCO-IT....
• Budy has also made Twitter threads about his situation: https://twitter.com/Hartonope/status/1540771452755....

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NOTE: GoGetFunding takes a percentage cut of the funds we raise. This is why we've had to calculate and include the platform fees into our fundraising goal. Thus, to avoid unnecessary costs, we strongly encourage you to donate to Budy's PayNow or PayLah directly.

(To prevent scams, please only transfer to the QR codes attached on this GoGetFunding page. Thank you.) We are keeping tally of these direct transfers here: https://tinyurl.com/budydirect.