Umno gives single mother of five a lift
Hired help receives motorcycle to ease her burden
JOHOR BARU: Umno’s welfare bureau here has donated a motorcycle to a single mother of five who put her children up at a snooker centre in Pasir Gudang.
Hasliza Hassan, 40, took the white-coloured motorcycle for a spin after it was presented to her by Pasir Gudang Umno Youth chief Azman Ja’afar yesterday morning.
Hasliza, who works at the snooker centre in Taman Kota Puteri, has to shelter at her place of work along with her three youngest children, aged between two and 16.
“My burden will be eased slightly with this motorcycle as I usually have to walk about 2km to buy groceries and food for my children,” she said.
The Johor Islamic Religious De- partment has offered to foot the deposit of a house for her and her children, said Hasliza, who earns about RM1,400 a month as a helper at the snooker centre.
Her story came to light after her daughter Farah Marcella Bandi, 18, a school dropout, was taken in by her teacher just two months before her Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examinations.
Under her teacher Suraya Abdul Rahim’s watchful eyes, Farah scored 6As, 1B+ and 1C+ in the examination and was praised by Malaysians after her story went viral on social media.
After her husband left the family a few years ago, Hasliza faced financial difficulties and had to move her children from place to place, usually cramming into a rented room.
They eventually sought shelter at the Taman Kota Puteri snooker cen- tre where she works, sleeping under the counter.
Hasliza added that Farah, who is still staying at her teacher’s house, is considering entering Kolej PolyTech Mara in Malacca after receiving a scholarship offer.
Her eldest child, 20-year-old Hens Hemsus works as a cashier at an entertainment outlet in Pasir Gudang, which provides him with a place to stay.
She said her son helped out with the family’s expenses but he will be continuing his studies at a polytechnic college next month.
Azman said the aid was from the party’s welfare bureau after its chairman Datuk Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah came to know about the family’s plight.
He advised Hasliza not to sell the motorcycle but to use it for her family.