March 22, 2023

14:03

Mencius Melo – From Amazon Agency

MANAUS – “I never imagined that I, at 77 years old, would have to jump a bus turnstile”. Thus, retired teacher Wilma Bezerra de Sena, resident of the Planalto neighborhood, West Zone of Manaus, reports the embarrassment she experienced in a crowded public transportation system bus.

The case occurred more than a month ago and the same made the complaint in the form of complaint to the body responsible for overseeing the segment companies, the Municipal Institute of Urban Mobility (IMMU), but did not get back to the time of publication of this story.

Wilma is part of the 210 thousand people living in Manaus, above 60 years old, according to the National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) from IBGE, who have the right to use public transportation free of charge, according to article 261 of the Organic Law of Manaus Municipality (Loman). In the capital of Amazonas, people over 60 years old correspond to 23% of the 550 thousand public transportation users.

Among them, Wilma Sena reported: “I stopped in front of the supermarket where I shop. I was carrying packages in my hand and, when I stopped, the driver didn’t open the front door, I had to enter through the back door”, she said. “When I got on, I put the bag on the front seat and asked the conductor and the driver to stop the bus so I could get off and enter through the front door”.

The woman continued her account of the tense moment she experienced on the bus: “I asked please, I spoke about the law, and when I saw that nothing would be done, I decided to jump the turnstile. The bus was moving and I was afraid of falling off, people were shouting inside the bus: ‘She’s going to fall off! She’s going to fall! Someone supported me and so I got through. The driver and the conductor acted as if nothing was happening,” said Wilma. Still according to the woman, it is recurrent to be mistreated in a public transport in the capital, but the indignation was strong this time: “I shoot for less, but this time it was absurd!”

Wilma Sena opted not to divulge her image and also preferred not to name the bus line or the bus company where the incident occurred. She claimed fear of retaliation: “We live in a world so violent, so full of retaliation, that the fact that I gave my name is already a compromise. I’m not giving this interview hoping to punish anyone, I know that jobs are hard to come by. I just think that companies have to train their employees better, they are human beings who also have problems, but this doesn’t give them the right to mistreat users. I prefer not to expose myself”, he considered.

Empathy

Wilma Sena revealed to the reporter that she knows how to drive, but she doesn’t use a car because she thinks about her neighbor. “I know how to drive and I have a license, but I only use a car when I go to the road, to the farm that is located in a branch,” she said. When asked why she doesn’t use the car in the city, she gave a human answer. “My son, I have labyrinthitis and once I fell on the street during a crisis, now imagine if this happens to me behind the wheel? I’m going to kill someone. I can’t do that,” she declared.

Even thinking of her fellow man, the retiree did not get the same treatment on the bus. “I was there, hanging there, and almost nobody moved or took action,” she lamented. “I ride the bus a lot, one day I took 18 buses and I don’t know any retired teacher who doesn’t help his grandson or his son with his retirement money. It is a disrespect”, she criticized.

According to IMMU, the Manaus City Hall follows a protocol to deal with situations like the one that happened to Wilma Sena. “The IMMU’s traffic education department, along with the companies, has a lecture program, annually, aimed not only at the elderly, but also at other publics, such as convicts, for example. The companies themselves also have these retraining policies”, explained the advisory.

The IMMU’s advisory board also points out that there are lectures and guidance scheduled throughout the year, intensified, especially, in campaigns such as “Yellow May” and “Senior Citizen’s Day”, related to the processes of care for the elderly and PCDs. There are also inspection services. The complaints are made through “Disk Transporte 118”. “With the necessary data for verification, we carry out the confirmation procedure and, if confirmed, we warn or punish the professional. This includes complaints related not only to attendance, but also to bus stops, hours, etc…”, it detailed.

Estimation

The rate will place Brazil as the sixth in number of people over 60 in the world. In the Brazilian social reality, this is the age group that is growing the most in the country, requiring infrastructure and urban readjustments, social programs and projects for an increasingly older population.