HOME Minister Hamzah Zainudin said today he had instructed his officers to look into the case of Rohana Abdullah, a stateless woman who was raised by a non-Muslim after she was abandoned as a baby.

According to Rohana, her biological mother abandoned her as a two-month-old baby at a kindergarten 22 years ago and returned to Indonesia.

Rohana taken in by kindergarten teacher Chee Hoi Lan, 83, who raised her adopted daughter as a Muslim.

“I was touched when I was informed about this last week.

“I have instructed my officers to investigate the validity of the information provided first before making any decision,” Hamzah said in a brief Facebook post today.

Rohana, who is fluent in Mandarin, expressed her gratitude to Chee for bringing her up and taking care of her.

Rohana’s citizenship has been questioned because her birth mother is Indonesian and her Malaysian father disappeared when she was little.

Rohana has been applying for citizenship since 2016 but she has yet to get any response.

Harian Metro reported that she is being forced to drop out of school because she does not have proper documents.

The chairman of a residents committee in Zon Batu, Gulam Muszaffar Ghulam Mustakim, said they had raised Rohana’s predicament with the Home Ministry. He said he would also send an official letter to Hamzah.

“We will send the supporting documents, including a copy of the father’s identity card, Rohana’s birth certificate, and her application for citizenship, which she made in 2016,” he said to the Malay-language daily. – January 16, 2022.