Compiled by CHARLES RAMENDRAN, CHOW HOW BAN and R. ARAVINTHAN
ONE celebration Rosidah Muda, 52, especially looks forward to is Chinese New Year as that’s when she is open for business.
“This is the only time of the year I take orders. I started making nian gao or kuih bakul early last month because I had orders for over 5,000 pieces to complete,” said the single mother from Kuala Telemong, Kuala Terengganu.
Rosidah, who works full-time as an administrative assistant at a primary school, said she began her kuih bakul business in 2015 after receiving requests from her Chinese and Malay friends.
She learnt how to prepare nian gao from her late mother, Mariam Osman who was a well-known traditional kuih maker in Hulu Terengganu.
With each kuih bakul priced at RM4.50, her once-a-year venture earns her between RM12,000 and RM15,000.
“My salary from my full time job is not big. This annual income from the sale of kuih bakul helps. Part of it is saved and the rest used for the expenses of my three children who are still studying.”
On weekdays, she produces about 30 pieces a day while on weekends she is able to double the amount to 60.
> “Thank you for being my friend”. These were the final words of an 11-year-old boy to his friends prior to his death on Thursday, allegedly from methadone poisoning in Sungai Ramal Baru, Kajang, reported Sinar Harian.
This was revealed by the boy’s uncle in a social media post.
The victim had apparently written a note with the message while playing with friends.
“He thanked them for being his friends. His friends told me about it,” he said.
The family has since denied claims that the boy was intentionally given a harmful substance and believe the case occurred due to a confusion between two medicine bottles with similar white labels.
The victim’s younger siblings remain warded in hospital, while their parents have been detained to assist investigations under laws of the Child Act 2001.
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.
