However, she is still stateless – despite numerous attempts to obtain citizenship, with the National Registration Department (NRD) asking her to produce three witnesses to attest to her birth each time.

Besides being the only one among her seven siblings who is still not a citizen, Alliamah, the daughter of a rubber tapper, is also a mother of seven Malaysian nationals.

“I have been applying to be a citizen of the country in which I was born for more than 40 years but each time I have been told to wait unless I can produce three witnesses. It’s really tough being stateless.

“I am asked to pay the rate of a foreigner for everything, which can be really high. Each time I have to beg for help, with my children doing what they can,” she told reporters here.

Asked why her birth was not registered when all her siblings are citizens, Alliamah said she was born in a rubber estate hospital at a time when communist insurgents had set fire to their home after they could not find any food.

“Our parents had to hide us in empty oil drums as the fight broke out. After the whole thing came to an end, my father still did not register me.

“I did not go to school and have been doing odd-jobs all my life. I moved to Penang island after getting married and had to raise seven children on my own due to my wayward husband,” she said.

She said all her life, every attempt at getting her IC was met with a “wait” order from government departments for over 40 years.

“I don’t know when I will get my IC (identity card). Maybe when I die?” an exasperated Alliamah said in Tamil.

Her seven children, aged 32 to 49, who have all tried to get Alliamah her citizenship, also hit a brick wall.

Her son Mohd Faizal Suresh Abdullah, 46, said the NRD officers are asking for three witnesses to attest to her birth.

“The bidan (midwife) who helped my mother was at least 20-30 years older than her at that time. They are likely to have died by now so it is impossible to have them as witnesses,” he said.

Faizal said that in 2018, doctors diagnosed Alliamah with bradycardia or an abnormally slow heart rate. The Seberang Jaya Hospital asked her RM70,000 for surgery for a pacemaker, which is the sum foreigners pay.

“They refused to treat her because she was stateless. The hospital staff told me, ‘please get ready, she is going to die soon’. I was angry and sought help from NGOs and VIPs,” he said.

With the help of Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy and others who had pleaded on their behalf, the Penang Hospital agreed to carry out the surgery- but only if they paid RM11,000, being the cost of the pacemaker from Abbott.

“We managed to get the surgery done finally.”

Foreign footballers get naturalised in four months

Ramasamy, who was with Alliamah at today’s press conference, said Penang’s statelessness task force has received 2,716 cases since 2013. He said that of the number, it successfully resolved 1,074 cases, while another 1,482 are pending approval by the NRD.

He said it was insulting to have those born in Malaysia before Merdeka being asked to produce witnesses to qualify for citizenship.

Bagan Dalam assemblyman Satees Muniandy said it was unfair to deny citizenship to the deserving when some foreign football players could become Malaysians in four months.

Ramasamy also opened the new Penang Citizenship Programme office at Level 46, Komtar. Those who need help with the statelessness issues can call 04-650-5105.