Dili, January 7, 2025 (Média Democracia) – José Alves, 58 years old from Manatuto, lives in Lisbutak, and has been doing activities such as picking up broken cans on the side of the road to earn money to cover his living expenses and pay for his children’s school fees.
According to José, the broken cans are his field to survive every day even though he is hit by heat and rain, but this is not an obstacle or a problem for him.
“My daily activity is walking on the side of the road looking for broken cans to lift weights. However, through this small activity some people consider me psychologically disabled because every day I always walk looking for broken cans in the trash. However, this is a reference for me because our lives all depend on this job.” He said.
He continued, during his activity of collecting cans, there were people who said rude things to him, but he used those words as motivation so that he would not stop doing the work he did every day.
“The broken cans that I sort start at 05.00 in the morning. I start from my house by pushing an empty cart, walking on the side of the road, so that I can find broken cans that people throw away on the side of the road and in landfills. We have to wake up early to walk along the road that is always crowded with people, because there are also many people who make a living by weighing broken cans, so they can get money to meet their daily needs.” He added.
He added that he found more broken cans in the trash can because people always throw them there, but this job is only for people who are used to it, because to do this job requires a kind person, there we always find various kinds of trash but keep trying to fight the problem.
“The money I get from weighing broken cans, every day I always get $ 15.00,- to $ 17.00,-, because I always weigh these broken cans in Aimutin, for 1 kg 0.50 cents, if the iron weighs up to 10 kg I can get a lot of money,” he said.
It is better explained that José’s life only relies on broken cans and broken iron to support his family, this money will help his family’s economy and pay for his children’s school because he as a father is not an opportunity but a responsibility.
Reported by : Nelfiano
Picture by : Nelfiano