PASIR SALAK: The hardship of five siblings after being abandoned by their father, followed by the death of their mother from COVID-19, has caught the attention of the Malaysian Family Foundation which feted them at the Malaysian Family Aspirations (AKM) Tour at Litar Dato' Sagor, here.

C. Cristina, 30, the eldest in the family, said the passing of their mother, who had been the pillar of the family, left them living in misery, with the need to be self-reliant and seek a new source of income.

"We were desperate as we had lost our sole breadwinner. I have to take care of my younger siblings, with the youngest aged 10 as our father had abandoned us a long time ago while our mother had just passed away," she said when met by Bernama.

Cristina's is one of the families who received assistance from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob at the closing of the Perak edition of the Malaysia Family Aspirations Tour today.

She said the RM3,000 financial aid would be used to buy a laptop for her younger brother S. Dharchanamoortmyra, 11, to motivate him to study hard.


"I am truly grateful as I also have to support my husband who is a person with disabilities (PwD), so I have a limited budget to buy a laptop for my brother," she added.

Meanwhile, single mother Maziana Zakaria, 43, said the RM5,000 aid that she received would be invested for her son Muhammad Syaiman Samsul Kamal's future. He is10 years old.

"I will use the money to pay for his university fees and for his savings," said the mother of four.

Maziana described the contribution as 'rezeki' (good fortune) for her children after they lost their father in a road accident in February last year.

Another recipient, Nurul Iman Zinun, 12 who lost her mother to COVID-19 last September, expressed her happiness of receiving a RM6,500 one-off contribution from the foundation.

She said she would use the money to buy gadgets and other items for her schooling.

"Thank you, Prime Minister for the assistance," she added.

-- BERNAMA