By Siti Salwa Shaari
PEKAN: Every time the day turns cloudy or rains heavily, she would feel her heart beating in her chest in palpitation as the wooden house that she had been living in since 2007 under the Desa Al-Ayubi Hardcore Poor Housing Project (PPRT) in Kampung Temai Hulu, was often flooded due to overflowing Sungai Pahang which is located near the village.
The situation which has been going on for 10 years has caused Zainumar Abu Bakar, 43, to have trouble sleeping at night, especially during the monsoon season as she was constantly worried that the flood would sweep away her family’s only shelter without realising it.
However, the housewife’s fate began to change in February last year when she and 11 other families in the PPRT received the most meaningful gift from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah under the Rumah Rakyat Al-Sultan Abdullah (Ru’RASA) in the form of a stilt house worth RM100,000
The house was built in the village on His Majesty’s initiative, together with the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed Zayed Al Nahyan, by providing comfortable housing with safety features to avoid flooding. The initiative has been carried out in several districts in Pahang, especially areas that are often hit by floods.
“I am grateful and relieved that this year there are no more episodes of evacuating to the temporary relief centre (PPS). The previous house was often flooded, even up to the waist level, in addition to being faced with stagnant flood water that caused us to spend two weeks at the PPS.
“I will also never forget the experience when the school which was turned into a PPS where we took shelter was also hit by floods so that the rescue team had to re-evacuate us. I also went back and forth to PPS three times in one monsoon season due to recurring floods,” she said when interviewed by Bernama recently.
Despite being frequently hit by floods, Zainumar, 43, said that she never thought of moving or building a house on stilts due to her family’s lack of means as his husband Abdul Maulut Musa, 43, only works in the village as a daily wage earner.
Another recipient, Mariani Musa, 56, said that the gift of a house at her age now means the world to her because she no longer has to work hard to pack things every time the river starts overflowing.
“Buying a new house never crossed my mind because of the monthly instalments. Wanting to build it myself, where can I live (while constructing the house)? If I don’t have this (new) house, I will continue to live in the old house and face floods all the time.
“However, the older you get, the more tiring it is to pack things and clean the house after the water receded. Even though the children help, it also feels tiring if you have to evacuate several times a year,” she said.
Mariani, who sells daily necessities on a small scale to supplement the income of her husband Ahmad Ab Hamid, 66, who is self-employed, said that once she lost quite a bit when they did not have enough time to move her merchandise to safety as the water rose too quickly.
On top of no longer needing to wade the flood water, Mariani is also grateful that she now has the same neighbours as before, with all the residents of Desa Al-Ayubi PPRT, as they have gotten along so well in addition to their caring attitude.
“Everyone knows each other. Not only the parents but also the children and grandchildren. If anything happens, it’s easy for me to seek help. It’s nice that we live in a comfortable environment.
“If I were given a chance I hope to be able to meet Tuanku (Al-Sultan Abdullah) because I want to express my gratitude for His Majesty’s concern towards our well-being and this house is a priceless and most meaningful gift that I have ever received in my life,” she said. – BERNAMA
