Compiled by C.ARUNO, NAN HIDAYAT NAN AZMIE and R. ARAVINTHAN
PRODUCER and director Erma Fatima has called for greater awareness of the misuse of religion, saying she will continue highlighting the issue through her works despite facing criticism, Harian Metro reported.
Erma said her stories were meant to encourage the public to recognise how religion can be exploited for personal gain.
“When I make these stories for awareness, you all get upset. Please wake up. Save our religion from being exploited at will,” she said.
Her remarks received support from actress Yana Samsudin, who urged Erma to continue producing works that spread awareness.
Erma has previously produced dramas including Bidaah, Keluarga Itu and Walid, which feature issues surrounding the misuse of religion to raise greater awareness among viewers.
> RM30 is all 81-year-old fisherman Idris Jauh earns for spending a day tying a 100m-long fishing net in Kampung Hailam, Melaka.
It may not be much, but for Idris, the work is a way to stay productive after heart problems forced him to give up fishing at sea, Kosmo! reported.
“Now I am not well and cannot go out to sea like I used to. So, I spend much of my time taking up jobs tying nets. I get RM30 for each net, which usually takes a day to complete,” he said when met at the Kampung Hailam fishermen’s jetty in Pantai Puteri.
Idris, who first went to sea at 13, said fishing had been part of his life for decades and was passed down through generations in his family.
“My soul is that of a fisherman. No matter what, I still feel like going to sea. If I cannot go out, at least being able to look at the sea is enough,” he said.
> Khairul Amin Kamarulzaman, known as Khairul Aming, broke down while recalling how financial constraints once left him feeling helpless as his late father battled illness, reported Utusan Malaysia.
“I really wished I could have used some of my money to help my late father when he was sick. I felt so helpless because I had no money. He was seriously ill, and I could not afford his medication or even hire a caregiver,” he said during a TikTok live session.
Khairul Aming said the experience later shaped his approach to business, including his decision to reinvest almost all his earnings into building his first Sambal Nyet factory in Kelantan.
He said he also wanted to create opportunities for young people in Kelantan who might not have the means to move to Kuala Lumpur and believed his success should benefit those around him.
(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.)
