With birth cert, boy can finally go to school

PORT DICKSON: Eight-year-old orphan Muhammad Yusri will finally be able to go to a government school after he received his birth certificate from the National Registration Department (NRD).

Muhammad, who has only been attending tuition classes all this while, was all smiles when he received the document from NRD director-general Zamri Misman at his grandparents’ home here.

His grandmother Sabariah Ahmad, 66, expressed her gratitude to the department.

All smiles: Muhammad holding his long-awaited birth certificate.

“I have been worried for him because he should be in Year Two. With this document, we can finally get him enrolled,” she said.

Prior to this, she said Muhammad was also unable to travel or get treatment at government health facilities as he did not have any identification document.

She said Muhammad’s mother died last year of renal failure. And during the recent fasting month, the boy’s father suffered a fatal heart attack.

She said her son had married Muhammad’s mother in a village and did not register the nuptials.

“Whenever I asked if he had registered Muhammad’s birth, he would say that the imam who conducted the nikah ceremony did not have the proper credentials and that it would be a difficult process,” she said.

Sabariah then started looking for any certification that could help in registering the birth.

“While going through my son’s belongings one day, I found some documents which I thought would be helpful and submitted an application,” she said, adding that she was surprised that the NRD had processed and approved the application in such a short period.

Zamri said the NRD had interviewed Muhammad’s relatives and other witnesses before issuing him with the document.

“After going through the entire process, we decided to issue the birth certificate,” he said.

However, he said Muhammad was a non-citizen as his mother was an Indonesian.

As such, he said Muhammad’s guardians must now go through the adoption process and then apply for his citizenship.

He advised parents to register their child’s birth within 60 days, regardless of whether or not their marriage was registered, as delays could cause problems.