JOHOR BARU: The young children of primary school teacher Istiqomah Ahmad Rozi (pic), who was brutally murdered, will be given extra attention and monitoring in school.
Johor women, family and community development committee chairman Khairin-Nisa Ismail said the three children, aged four to nine years, have been trying to cope with the loss of their mother.
“The whole family is also still adapting to her passing and will need time to recover.
“Our main concern is that the children have access to mobile phones and they might stumble upon distressing news about their mother. We do not know how they will take it.
“During our visit to the family home, the victim’s four-year-old daughter was busy playing games, the eldest son kept to himself.
“Only the second daughter, aged six, expressed that she misses her mum,” said Khairin-Nisa when interviewed yesterday.
Earlier, she visited the family in Taman Kota Masai, Pasir Gudang here, along with Johor education and information committee chairman Aznan Tamin and Tiram assemblyman Azizul Bachok.
She added that the state Social Welfare Department (JKM) has given an immediate counselling session to the victim’s husband, children and other family members during the visit.
“They will be given continuous counselling sessions as long as they need them while they are in Johor because all of the family members are from Pasir Mas (Kelantan).
“The Johor Education Department has also been notified to monitor the children at school,” she added.
As additional support, Khairin-Nisa said JKM is prepared to send a child protector to help Istiqomah’s husband look after their children when he goes to work as a technician.
The children are currently under the care of their grandparents, she said.
The nine-year-old is in primary school and the six-year-old is in kindergarten. The four-year-old is left with her grandparents.
“The state government has also given a donation to the family under the JKM’s emergency fund and we will continue to assist the family, especially the children.
“What the family wants right now is peace and space to grieve, so I urge the media and the public to let the police conduct their investigations,” said Khairin-Nisa.
Meanwhile, Aznan said he has reminded the state Education Department to pay close attention to the children’s progress at school and assist them when needed.
“We do not want the children to be affected by the news around them, so we have requested a school counsellor to watch over them. We are also sorting out the insurance process with the Education Ministry,” he said, adding that the state government will also be helping with Istiqomah’s burial.
Meanwhile, the victim’s husband Mohd Yusof Mokhtar, 35, said his family has been traumatised after reading the fake news and speculations that have been widely spread online about the alleged previous relationship between his wife and the male suspect.
“There have been a lot of media portals and radio stations that have carried this news and even created speculations of their own. This has given us tremendous pressure. Please have a heart (for us),” he said.
Mohd Yusof also said the kids seemed to be in a daze lately.
“When I asked them, they’d say they missed their mum.
“I’ve been trying to take them out of the house more often to the malls or playgrounds, so that they could clear their heads ... that is all I can afford to do,” he added.
On Monday, Mohd Yusof said his children had understood that their mother was gone, though they missed her terribly.
“It breaks my heart, but I have to be strong for my children’s sake,” he said.
Istiqomah, 34, a teacher with SK Kota Masai 3, was reported missing after leaving for work on Dec 26, 2023.
On Monday, the Melaka police confirmed that the dismembered body found in a rubbish bin on Dec 31 was that of Istiqomah.
A team from the Johor and Melaka police contingents had tracked down a married couple and detained them in Chemor, Perak, on Aug 4.
The man, 37, a former teacher, had had business dealings with the victim, according to preliminary police findings.
This main suspect in the gruesome murder is currently under remand to help in investigations while the 36-year-old female suspect was released on police bail on Monday.
