Up until she qualified as a teacher, the TB and Chest Association, paid $35 of the electricity bill. While she had been studying, her husband had supported the family on an income of $24,000 per year. They had used high-interest (30%), short-term loans to get needed money. Once Muliaga had qualified as a teacher, the combined income rose to $60,000. However, when she became ill and had to be hospitalised in early 2007, the family's income was once again reduced to $24,000 per year.
