Single father takes on odd jobs to support five kids

A SINGLE father is taking up odd jobs to raise his four children, Utusan Malaysia reported.

Since Mohd Rizal Amran, 41, and his wife divorced, he has to care for his four daughters and a son. The children are aged seven to 11 years old.

He earns RM600 a month working twice a week at a noodles factory in Pontian, Johor, but also takes on other jobs to make ends meet.

“When I am not working at the factory, I take grass-cutting jobs where I can earn up to RM400 but the amount I get depends on how many people will hire me and I rarely hit that amount,” he said.

He said he can also earn between RM100 and RM200 doing wiring works and he was thankful that his meagre income enabled him to feed his family.

He recently received RM500 worth of items from the Pontian Youth Council which was presented to him by its treasurer Nurul Farhana Simin

Mohd Rizal said he had applied for assistance before but was rejected because of his “single father” status.

> Settlers in an Orang Asli village in Gua Musang have been using lanterns to light up their nights for the past 30 years and are hoping for more modern amenities, Kosmo! reported.

Kampung Om village head Jali Angah said 12 families live in the village without basic amenities such as electricity, water, and telecommunication facilities.

“It’s already 2021 but it’s like we are still stuck in the ‘60s as we don’t have such amenities like other villages.

“We will use lanterns every night to light up our homes. Thankfully, the head of a logging company was generous enough to provide us with diesel and clean water,” he said.

He hopes allocations in Budget 2021 will also be used to provide them with the basic amenities.

> When acting jobs became scarce during the movement control order (MCO), actor Fendy Bakry shifted his focus to his small food business, Harian Metro reported.

He said artistes cannot rely solely on a single source of income but need to diversify or invent new ways to earn a living.

“I understand how the MCO affected those working in show business, especially behind the scenes but we need to carry on living in these tough times,” he said.

Fendy said he had to make a lot of sacrifices during the MCO in addition to not getting as many acting jobs during that period.

He said he incurred some losses but circumstances also forced him to turn down a few acting jobs.

“Although indoor shootings are allowed now, it also has its limitations,” he said as he hoped for the local performance scene to get back on its feet.