Rose (right) cries as a staff member of Lanang parliamentary service centre leads her to a car to bring her to Sibu TTG.
SIBU (March 9): A 53-year-old woman and her three children found living in a makeshift hut in a bush in Sibu Jaya here were brought to Sibu Temporary Transit Centre (TTG) for homeless persons here yesterday.
The woman named Rose Akam and her children aged between 12 and 23 are without identification documents.
Rose agreed to be brought to Sibu TTG after representatives from Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) Dudong service centre, Lanang parliamentary service centre, Sibu Welfare Department, Community Care Enrichment Programme (CCEP) Foundation, Kapitan Tieng Mee Ann and Sibu TTG supervisor Winnie Wong took about one hour to persuade her to follow them.
The woman from Nanga Ensengai in Kanowit and her children have been living in the bush for more than a year after she and her husband separated.
To make ends meet, Rose and her children would collect ‘midin’ and other jungle produce to be sold at Sibu Jaya market.
They depend on rain water for consumption.
Rose has six children with her husband. Two of her children are married and another child followed her ex-husband whose whereabouts is not known after their separation.
According to Penghulu Peter John who joined the group to persuade Rose, the family will be placed at Sibu TTG for two weeks to facilitate her citizenship application process.
He said they had tried to apply for identification documents for Rose’s three children but they could not proceed due to her stateless status.
“We were advised by the National Registration Department to help Rose obtain her citizenship status first for her children to be issued with identification documents.
“I do hope for them to have at least a temporary identification document to facilitate their daily lives,” he said.
Peter also hoped that relevant authorities like the Welfare Department would help Rose own a house under Hardcore Poor Housing Programme (PPRT).
Meanwhile, Rose’s family story which was shared on social media before had caught the attention of CCEP Foundation, a charity organisation based in Peninsular Malaysia.
CCEP Foundation chief executive officer Yee Poo Yoon said she started a donation drive to help the family after she saw the post and managed to raise RM6,350.
“We also have agreed to pay for Rose’s house rent at Sibu Jaya and other necessities after they move out of Sibu TTG.
“To help her youngest daughter, we planned to send her to school after she gets her identification document,” she said.
Yee hoped other relevant authorities or individuals would come forward to help the destitute family.
from Borneo Post Online https://ift.tt/IZVFtEd
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment