Orphaned siblings cope with loss this Ramadan

Compiled by HO JIA WEN, C. ARUNO and R. ARAVINTHAN

THIS Ramadan is especially lonely and heartbreaking for five orphaned siblings who lost their beloved parents in a tragic motorcycle accident in January, reported Utusan Malaysia.

“This is our first fasting period without them, so it is very quiet at home. No longer do we have our mother reminding us for every sahur and break fast,” said the eldest sibling, Fatin Hanani Mohd Norzianal, 23.

The five siblings, aged from 23 to five years old, still reside at their family home in Taman Pahlawan in Sungai Petani, Kedah.

Fatin Hanani said her siblings miss their mother’s chicken rice the most.

“Our mother’s chicken rice is our favourite dish. We also miss performing prayers together,” she said.

The siblings are being cared for by their grandfather and rely on their late parents’ savings, as well as aid from the Social Security Organisation (Perkeso) and zakat.

Their parents, Mohd Norzianal Mohd Ainol, 46, and Suhana Othman, 43, died after their motorcycle skidded and hit an electric pole while they were trying to avoid a wild boar near the Kuala Muda district police headquarters (IPD) on Jan 11.

> Thirty-six-year-old Muhd Edy travelled all the way to Guangzhou, China, to learn the art of making Chinese stuffed flatbread from his friend’s grandmother.

The effort paid off when he could sell over a thousand flatbreads daily at his stall at the Shah Alam Stadium Ramadan Bazaar, reported Kosmo!“I took two weeks to learn the type of ingredients used to make the stuffed flatbread, its preparation, as well as the cooking method,” he said.

Muhd Edy said he imports the spices and bread flour from China to ensure the authenticity and taste.

“I prepare the filling at home while the bread dough is kneaded at the stall.

“There are two filling options, chicken and beef, and they are sold at prices ranging from RM9 to RM13,” he said.

The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a, it denotes a separate news item.