MELAKA – A woman was heartbroken by the death of her 7-year-old adopted son, whom she had cared for since he was two months old, believed to be due to abuse.
Norlida Abu Hassan, 50, said although she accepted the demise of her adopted son, she was very upset because the child she had cared for as her own flesh and blood was treated in such a way.
She said the last time she met her adopted son, who was affectionately known as Adik, was in November last year in Rawang, Selangor, after the boy was handed back to his biological mother, who lives in Krubong here, a month prior.
“I should have defended Adik. I thought his mother couldn’t bear to be away from her son anymore, so I let him return to her.
“I never thought that the child, whom I treated like my own, could disappear in the blink of an eye in such a terrible way,” she told reporters when met at Taman Seri Jati, Batu Berendam here today.
Norlida said over a span of more than six years, Adik’s biological mother only came to visit him a few times, and they got back in touch when she tried to get Adik’s documentation for his Standard 1 admission.
Last year, she said the biological mother had expressed her desire to take him back, and after handing him over to his biological family, Norlida did not get the opportunity to see the child anymore, to the point that her phone number was blocked.
“We met him secretly once at a restaurant in Rawang. Adik was brought by his stepfather to meet us, and Adik said he missed Ummi (me).
“This loss is not only ours as it is being felt by many because of his friendly, cheerful and easygoing nature,” she said.
The 7-year-old boy died in Taman Krubong Jaya here, yesterday, after he was believed to have been abused by his mother, 32, and stepfather, 38.
The child was allegedly drowned in a water tub in his house in the 4pm incident. However, preliminary investigations found physical injuries on the victim’s body. – Bernama, January 30, 2021
