For sisters Nur Firuza Amira Fairuz Nizam, 9, and Nur Firuza Aqila, 6, this is the third Hari Raya they will be celebrating without their parents.
Orphaned two years ago after their parents and youngest sister perished in a road accident Amira, in particular, tends to get emotional when reminded of her loved ones who departed from them suddenly in a cruel twist of fate.
The sisters, accompanied by their aunt and guardian Yusnidah Hussain, 49, visited the Bernama headquarters, here recently to receive Hari Raya contributions from various sponsors, including Busana Saizara, Canggih, Teratak Spa and Yusa Food Products Sdn Bhd.
The event was facilitated by Hawa Business Centre, which provides professional services to physical and online businesses, as a corporate social responsibility initiative.
Amira and Aqila also participated in the recording of a special Hari Raya show to be aired by Bernama News Channel (BNC) this morning as part of its NINE11 programme.
At the recent event at Bernama, the two girls were as happy as a lark and cheerfully answered questions posed by Bernama chairman Datuk Seri Azman Ujang, who handed over the Raya gifts to them.
Eyeing a packet of kuih semperit (a traditional cookie made from flour, butter and sugar) which were among the gifts she had received, Amira said she wanted to eat them later when breaking her fast.
Later, however, when asked what her plans were for Hari Raya, she gamely replied that she would get her "mama" and "baba", as she called her uncle and aunt, to take her to the cemetery to visit the graves of her parents and little sister.
Suddenly, she became mournful and burst into tears. There was pin-drop silence in the room as all eyes riveted on her and everyone felt a tug on their heartstrings.
Tragedy struck Amira and Aqila's family on May 2, 2015, when their parents Fairuz Nizam Hussain, 35, and Nova Safitri Azhari, 27, as well as six-month-old baby sister Nur Firuza Annisa, died in an accident at the Damansara-Ulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE) whilst on their way back to Batu Caves where they lived. This accident had received wide media coverage as it was a hit-and-run case.
Following the accident, the orphaned sisters stayed with their grandmother before moving in with their aunt Yusnidah and her husband, who have been given temporary guardianship of the girls, in Gombak, Selangor.
According to Yusnidah, who is a sister of the girls' late father, the sudden deaths of their parents had a more profound impact on Amira than Aqila
"It could be because Amira being the older of the two has more wonderful memories of her parents. Aqila is rather quiet and doesn't seem that emotional. It could be because she was only four when the tragedy took place," she said.
Yusnidah and her husband, who run their own businesses, have eight children of their own aged between nine and 27 and the arrival of Amira and Aqila has added more joy to their family.
"This is the third year the two girls are celebrating Raya with us. There's still a tinge of sadness but the two have been able to adapt well to our family," she added.
LOVING AND GRATEFUL
Yusnidah said Amira often expressed her love and gratitude to her (Yusnidah) by leaving her notes with contents such as, "Terima kasih mama sebab jaga Amira dan Aqila, I love you mama (Thank you mama for taking care of Amira and Aqila, I love you mama)."
"There are days when I would return home and they both would rush to hug me... who won't be touched (by such physical demonstrations of love)? They look happy but I know deep inside they are afraid of losing us," she said, her eyes tearing up.
After being granted guardianship of Amira and Aqila, Yusnida and her husband were required to undergo counselling at the Social Welfare Department to ensure that they could cope with two more children in their already large household and also accord their nieces the same love and care they did to their own children.
-- BERNAMA
Bernama
Tue Jun 27 2017
Amira and Aqila also participated in the recording of a special Hari Raya show.
Nahas helikopter Lumut: 2 Pegawai Memerintah Skuadron, ini senarai mangsa terkoban
Tiga anggota Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) wanita dan dua Pegawai Memerintah Skuadron antara 10 yang terkorban dalam nahas dua helikopter bertembung dan terhempas di Pangkalan TLDM Lumut.
Bursa Singapura: Perubahan peraturan bantu pelabur panggil mesyuarat khas
Peraturan baharu itu boleh menjadi langkah positif dalam usaha memperbaik tadbir urus korporat.
Airasia Consulting teruskan libat urus bagi nyahlabur Srilankan Airlines
AirAsia Consulting berhasrat untuk meneruskan libat urus dengan pihak International Finance Corporation (IFC) yang diberi mandat memberi nasihat kepada kerajaan Sri Lanka berhubung usaha nyahlabur dalam SriLankan Airlines Ltd.
Harga minyak: Peningkatan harga beri kesan positif dan negatif - SERC
Terdapat kebimbangan mengenai "kesan pesanan kedua" bekalan minyak yang dijangka menyebabkan kenaikan harga tenaga dan seterusnya inflasi. Ini akan melemahkan perbelanjaan pengguna dan permintaan pelaburan.
Victoria Beckham sifatkan reunion Spice Girls hadiah terbaik sambut usia ke-50
Victoria Beckham Sifatkan Reunion Spice Girls Hadiah Terbaik Sambut Usia 50
Kerajaan perlu ambil kira graduan sedia ada di pasaran
Kerajaan perlu mengambil kira graduan Pendidikan dan Latihan Teknikal dan Vokasional (TVET) yang sedia ada dalam pasaran ketika ini jika mahu melihat keberkesanan penetapan gaji premium untuk graduan dalam bidang itu secara optimum.
Nahas helikopter Lumut: PM akan umum bantuan untuk waris mangsa - TPM
Kerajaan akan mengumumkan bantuan khas kepada waris 10 anggota dan pegawai Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia (TLDM) yang terkorban dalam nahas dua helikopter di Pangkalan TLDM Lumut.
Pasaran buruh: Produktiviti tenaga kerja masih perlu dipertingkat
Kadar pengangguran telah menurun kepada paras sebelum wabak Covid-19 sebanyak 3.3 peratus pada suku keempat 2023, namun, kadar pengangguran berasaskan kemahiran berada pada 37.4 peratus dalam tempoh yang sama.
Kewangan: Golongan Millenial, Gen Z Malaysia teraju perbankan Islam
Malaysia juga mempunyai kadar tertinggi pengguna yang hanya menggunakan perbankan Islam (42 peratus), berbanding hanya lebih suku (26 peratus) daripada responden global.
MCMC nasihat tidak muat naik dan padam video
MCMC mengingatkan orang ramai supaya tidak memuat naik atau menyebarkan rakaman video nahas dua helikopter TLDM.
Bekas Pengerusi Bernama Azman Ujang terima anugerah berprestij Jepun
Anugerah tersebut atas sumbangan beliau dalam mempromosi perasaan saling menghormati serta memahami antara Jepun dan Malaysia.
Lee sambut baik agenda laluan motosikal dalam RMK-12
Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye berkata, laluan motosikal amat diperlukan bagi mengurangkan kemalangan jalan raya membabitkan penunggang dan pembonceng motosikal.
Terus sokong akhbar - Azman Ujang
Media kini merupakan bidang amat mencabar susulan ledakan atau transformasi dalam teknologi maklumat.
Kempen kurangkan kemalangan motosikal perlu dipertingkat
Kempen kesedaran itu perlu kerana ia melibatkan keselamatan pengguna jalan raya dan mengurangkan kematian membabitkan penunggang dan pembonceng motosikal.
Nahas bas: Cadangan guna tali pinggang keledar, tiada perjalanan malam
Kemalangan bas ekspres yang meragut 14 nyawa sehari sebelum sambutan Krismas semalam bagaikan siri tragedi membabitkan pengangkutan awam setiap kali musim perayaan.
Apa lagi Samy Vellu mahu?
Penyokong G. Palanivel membantah berhubung satu temu bual yang diberikan kepada akhbar Sunday Star yang menurut mereka satu serangan kasar ke atas Palanivel yang dididik sendiri oleh Samy Vellu.