UMS graduate receives her scroll in hospital from CM
KOTA KINABALU: A Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) graduate who was involved in an accident earlier this month was given a confidence boost when she received her scroll personally from Chief Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.
Fatma Faisal, 23, could not attend the recent UMS Convocation Ceremony as she was still undergoing treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital 1 (QEH 1) due to the injuries that she had suffered in the accident, which occurred on November 1.
To show his support for the psychology graduate, Shafie opted to visit and personally present the scroll to Fatma, who managed to obtain Second Class Honours in her course, at the hospital yesterday.
“Today (Friday), we conducted a special ceremony for a student who was involved in an accident. She is still in her weak state but she is conscious.
“As a result, she was not able to attend the recent graduation ceremony. I hope that this (the visit) will lift up her spirit and give her joy.
“We pray that she would recover as soon as possible,” Shafie told reporters when met after the visit.
On November 1, the car that Fatma was traveling in crashed and hit a tree near Masjid Bandaraya, Likas, around 9.30pm.
The driver, Karbi Ali, 24, was pronounced dead at QEH 1, an hour after the accident.
Mohd Roslan Faisal, 26, who is Fatma's elder brother, disclosed that his sister had suffered nerve injuries in the accident.
“The doctor told us that Fatma suffered injuries in her C3, the part that controls the the reflex system - especially in her respiration and her body's reflex.
“She also suffered swelling on her brain. However, she is recovering well so far,” he said.
Fatma is the fifth child out of 11 siblings. She and her family are from Semporna.
When asked how the family had felt about Shafie's visit, Roslan said his family was very touched and thankful by Shafie's kind gesture.
Roslan revealed that the family had never requested for Shafie to come and that it was Shafie himself who willingly came.
Also present was UMS Vice Chancellor Professor Datuk Dr D Kamarudin D Mudin.