Zahid Did Not Show Up To Meet This Stateless Top Student, But Others Have Come To Her Aid
With a new legal guardian and a scholarship offer, Roisah filed a fresh application for citizenship yesterday.
By Katrina Khairul Azman — 22 Mar 2018, 04:20 PM
On 13 March, Roisah Abdullah made headlines when it was revealed that the STPM top scorer could not apply to local universities due to her stateless status
According to The Malaysian Insight, Roisah's biological mother is a foreigner while her father's details remain unknown.
In January, the 20-year-old learned that her application for citizenship submitted in 2013 had been rejected, making her unable to further her studies in Malaysia.
Yesterday, 21 March, Roisah was scheduled to meet Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to discuss her citizenship application. However, he did not show up to the appointment.
According to Malaysiakini, Roisah was sent home after being told that the deputy prime minister would consider her application "in the near future."
Lawyer and PKR member N. Surendran commented that, "It doesn’t inspire confidence because last time, the Home Ministry took five years to consider Roisah’s application."
To help Roisah's chances of obtaining citizenship, PKR Wanita chief Zuraida Kamaruddin has filed to become her legal guardian
Malaysiakini reported that Zuraida was touched by Roisah's ability to achieve excellence in school despite her hardships.
Zuraida made the decision to become the 20-year-old's guardian "so that she can continue her life in this country."
With help from Zuraida, Surendran, and PKR's Latheefa Koya, Roisah filed a fresh application for citizenship yesterday.Meanwhile, University Tun Abdul Razak chief executive Amid Izham Hamzah has also expressed his interest in offering Roisah a full scholarship
He told Malay Mail that, "Her determination to study despite the hardship she faced growing up is inspirational and I am sure many parties, just like us at UniRazak, will be happy to see her be given opportunities to go further in life."
"We have a scholarship programme going on especially for those from lower income families, there are also other scholarships available for different areas, we are confident Roisah will find something suited for her."