Disabled woman uses tongue to help mum's business

Using her tongue to type or access information on her smart phone and laptop, Nursamawati Mahmud, wishes to use her 'newfound ability' to promote soy sauce and vinegar produced by her mother for the past 10 years.

"I want to use the internet to expand my mother's business... so far, her products had been marketed around here and around Pendang and Pokok Sena," the eldest daughter among five siblings told reporters at her home.

Nursamawati's perseverance has attracted a telecommunication company, Clixster Mobile Sdn Bhd (Clixter Mobile) to come forward to help by donating a smartphone and sponsoring a lifelong internet package to her.

Clixter Mobile Brand Chief Communications and Media officer, Hazran Mohamed said they hoped the contribution could be used by Nursamawati to reach her goal in expanding her mother's business, besides socialising and such.

Nursamawati, who received the donations gratefully, said she started to use the internet since 2010 and planned to create a blog to tell her life story as a disabled person since she was one-year-old, and how she learned to use gadgets to access social websites such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Wechat.

"Because of my disabilities, I am becoming a shy person. But using social network, I can befriend people who accept me as their friends and always encourage me to be more positive," she said, adding that currently, she had about 1,400 friends on Facebook.

Her mother, Saudah Shaari, 52, said Nursamawati required more attention from her since her daughter was not able to eat, bathe or wear clothes on her own.