The 37-year-old mother of 10, Rosliza Hassan, was seen weeping outside her single-storey home.
Another picture of her youngest child, aged three, staring at the old fridge with leftovers from more than two weeks ago, had many in tears.
What’s worse, the woman and her four sons and six daughters, aged between three and 21, have been forced to live with daily meals in the form of fried rice with soy sauce. A clove of onions was actually a luxury.
Often, that was their only meal of the day, too.
Speaking to FMT over a phone belonging to a kind stranger, Rosliza said her suffering began in 2009 when her life went downhill.
Rosliza earns RM700 a month as a restaurant helper and her 40-year-old husband, whom she married when she was 16, was hardly around. She has been paying RM500 in rent for her single-storey home at Taman Machang Bubok for the past 12 years.
She said her husband “came and left” whenever he wished and worked odd jobs. When the movement control order kicked in last year, things got worse, as shops had to remain closed.
“We had no money. All we ate was ‘nasi goreng kosong’ with salt during Ramadan month last year.
“Until now, there is not much change. I add onions, once in a while, when I get,” she said in between sobs.
Rosliza’s 16-year-old daughter had to drop out when she was in Form Two to take care of her two younger siblings aged three and five. The teen also helps out at a restaurant to earn some money.
Her eldest child, a 21-year-old son, is already married but is also a wage earner and has to support his family.
She received RM500 from the zakat (tithes) authority but her application for social welfare aid was refused as she was told the tithes aid was more than sufficient.
“Some people have different rezeki (blessings) in the form of wealth, fame and many more. I have blessings in the form of 10 children,” she said.
Rosliza said her the owner of the house had asked her to leave yesterday afternoon, as another person had bought over the home. She had also rental arrears.
“He told me to leave home by 7am. I had no choice but to camp outside,” the Form Two dropout said.
Her plight was first spotted by a photographer and Good Samaritan Keow Wee Loong, who was having breakfast at a restaurant near Rosliza’s house. After talking to her, Keow decided to alert Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim.
Sim arrived almost immediately to help them out, taking Rosliza and her family to a nearby hypermarket to get them groceries, electrical equipment and other necessities.
He also bought them Raya clothes in advance, according to his posting on Facebook.
After that, they were placed at a rented home, with the rental fully borne by the MP, with a new fridge stocked with produce and other items needed.
An aide to Sim said over RM10,000 has been spent on the family in getting the necessary items, including deposit for rent of the new house.
Sim also gave Rosliza’s schooling children aged seven, 10, 12, and 14, laptops, as part of his constituency’s service to give underprivileged access to online learning.
They can stay in the rented house until the Penang Housing Board allocates them a PPR unit tomorrow, the aide said. Sim could not be reached for comment.
An elated Rosliza said she was thankful to Sim for coming to the rescue and hoped she could open her own stall selling mee goreng, pasembor and mee kuah one day.
“This is Allah’s blessing to me. I have prayed daily that my life will get better. It will be a special Ramadan for me, I am so grateful.”
For those who wish to help her, drop us a WhatsApp message on FMT’s Helpline at 0193899839. Click here to WhatsApp us.