Wu Fengchuan is responsible for processing documents at a police station in Sichuan. Photo: news.163.com
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https://scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2152938/chinese-policeman-brings-sick-wife-station-every-day-so-he-can People & Culture
Chinese policeman brings sick wife to station every day so he can keep an eye on her
Desk officer tells media his wife needs round-the-clock care, but he is unable to find anyone who is willing to do the job
Wu Fengchuan pictured eating with his wife in the police canteen. Photo: news.163.com
A police officer in southwest China has been taking his wife to work with him for the last three months after an illness left her in need of constant care, local media reported this week.
Photos of Wu Fengchuan, a 54-year-old officer with his wife at a police station in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, have been widely circulated online.
The woman, whose name was not given in the report, spent two months in hospital after her nervous system became infected and she remains unable to speak or care for herself.
Wu told Chengdu Economic Daily on Monday: “A normal person changed in a second.”
He told the newspaper he had been forced to take his wife to work with him because his sister was too busy with her own job and he had encountered problems finding a carer.
“We were planning to pay [the carer] 3,000 yuan (US$454) a month, but she was unwilling to come after hearing her condition,” Wu told the newspaper.
The police officer is in charge of a desk for processing people’s documents and has taught his wife penmanship to help her pass the time while he is working.
He also gets female members of staff to accompany her to the washroom when necessary.
The officer has taught her penmanship to help pass the time. Photo: news.163.com
Wu confessed that he knew that bringing his wife to work had inconvenienced his colleagues, but told the newspaper: “My home is just next to the police station and the workplace takes good care of me.
“I don’t want to cause any more inconvenience.”
Ruo Heng, the chief of the police station, told the newspaper: “If Wu left, we would be forced to re-arrange staff to replace him. It needs time and training and it would be inconvenient for the people lining up for document processing.
“We told him that if you need to take care of your wife or have an emergency at home, you can take leave. He is reluctant and he says he needs to bring his wife to work.”
But Wu admitted that if his wife’s condition worsened he would be forced to take early retirement to look after her.