KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 2 — Ben Nathan, the ‘90s singer-turned-vagabond who has been roaming the city’s streets, was spotted having tea at a restaurant in Brickfields, barely 12 hours after Malay Mail highlighted his plight.

The singer, best known for his hits Stanza Sepi Sekeping Hati and Ilusi Satu Penantian, said he stayed away from his family and made the streets home as he did not want to be a burden.

“I don’t want to disturb anyone ... they have their families. I like to be a lone ranger,” the 54-year-old said.

“I move around as certain places remind me of bad memories. Those flashbacks keep haunting me.”

Ben said he spent most of his nights at Dataran Merdeka, but would move to Muzium Negara when it rained.

“I sleep at Dataran ... open air. I get my laundry done at YMCA in Brickfields. I get money from sympathisers,” he said.

He often has his meals in Brickfields in the evening.

He recalled meeting Yayasan Artis 1Malaysia president Datuk DJ Dave recently, but said he had lost the singer’s contact number after his belongings were stolen when he was sleeping at Dataran Merdeka.

He seemed disillusioned, harping about his two-week recording gig in Jakarta. 

Malay Mail contacted his family and it turned out to be an emotional affair at the restaurant after Ben’s sisters — P. Thanalecthumy, 55, and P. Vashanthi, 43 — niece S. Suguna, 33, and grandniece R. Yasmeta, seven, rushed over.

They embraced in tears before curious onlookers.

Thanalecthumy and Vashanthi said they had not seen Ben for months.

“Whenever we tried to help, he always gives excuses. We even tried to persuade him to get help and he refused,” Vashanthi said.

“Several months ago, he turned violent when we pushed him to get help and he decided to leave us.”

She said the family was unsure of what to do next and hoped the authorities would help Ben.

“We just want what’s best for him. We pleaded for help from anyone ... we just don’t want to see him get hurt.”

Malay Mail had yesterday highlighted a video showing a shabbily dressed Ben wandering the streets. The video was posted on Mannin Mainthan Malaysia’s Facebook page on Tuesday.

The video had over 98,000 views and 1,500 shares as at press time.

Many said they had seen him wandering at Central Market, Dataran Merdeka, Brickfields and Ampang.

DJ Dave told Malay Mail he had approached Ben three times in the last six months and had offered to help, but he refused.

Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun said she would instruct the Welfare Department to help Ben.

She, however, said the ministry and the department could only act if Ben was willing to accept it.

“First of all, we need to understand why he is wandering the streets. Was it by force or by personal choice? If he is a sound man refusing help, then we should respect his wishes. Maybe he likes the freedom of living a carefree life,” she said.

“We need to determine the root cause of his problem before we can try to fix it.”