I have just been alerted of an irresponsible individual passing off as me and trying to initiate chats with ladies out there.
Am sure I am not the only one whose profile or photo is being copied and abused. This is now part and parcel of Facebook which is why I have been recommending my friends to join me in PeerPage where such things dont exist.
Be informed. Be aware.
Source: Fahmi Rais
All his life, he thought he was the only child of his loving Malay parents.
Even though everyone he met has assumed he is Chinese because he is fair-skinned, Mr Fahmi Rais never gave it much thought.
This was until about two weeks ago, when a casual question posed to his 90-year-old grandmother during a monthly visit revealed a shocking, long-kept family secret.
Mr Fahmi found out he had been adopted and that his biological parents are Chinese.
The 47-year-old media consultant said: “I told her that people have been asking me for many years if I was adopted.
“I expected her to tell me that I was being ridiculous. But when her expression changed and she was silent for a few seconds, I just knew it.”
Mr Fahmi, a Malay community leader who was a SingFirst candidate in this year’s General Election, was so overwhelmed by the sudden revelation that he started crying.
His grandmother, who was also reduced to tears, told him that his parents were a poor Chinese couple who lived in Segamat, Johor.
She had no other details of his adoption – neither names nor the amount of money exchanged, if any.
Already feeling lost, Mr Fahmi was crushed when he realised that his relatives had known about the adoption but hid it from him.
His adoptive parents died more than 20 years ago, both from heart attacks.
His maternal grandmother is his only surviving grandparent.
He said: “Maybe my parents wanted to tell me one day, but never had the chance.”
For the past two weeks, Mr Fahmi, a father of four children aged between six and 19, has been determinedly searching for his biological family.
He wrote to The New Paper, hoping that by sharing his story, he would find them.
His parents had managed to keep details of his adoption a mystery, even to his relatives.
Mr Fahmi’s most credible lead is his birth certificate, which was issued 10 years after he was born.
The names of his birth parents are not on the certificate, but there is one clue.
It lists Kandang Kerbau Hospital (now known as KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital) as his place of birth.
When he approached the hospital last week, he was told that there are no records of his birth and he was directed to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority.
They, too, told him they had no further information and asked him to approach the family court.
He is now waiting for the adoption registry, located at the MND Complex, to check if there are records of his adoption, but he has not heard from them yet.
Growing up as an only child, Mr Fahmi said the possibility of having siblings has been the greatest motivation for his search.
He believes his parents had many children and were forced to give a child away because of poverty.
“The thought that my sister could be sitting next to me at a foodcourt, or that my brother could be one of my friends on Facebook (without realising it), has been unbearable,” he said.
Mr Fahmi’s wife, Madam Sulaimah Abdul Kadir, 40, a consultant, was also there during Mr Fahmi’s conversation with his grandmother.
She said she is moved by his sadness since he found out the truth about his adoption.
“As a wife, I’ll support him in his search. But no matter what happens, we still love him for who he is,” she said.
Mr Fahmi insists he is not overreacting and that he just hopes to find closure.
The couple have an adopted daughter, Nur Natasya, 16, and Mr Fahmi admitted that he does blame his parents a little for withholding the truth from him.
He said: “My wife and I never hid the fact from our daughter that she was adopted. It was my policy of love, I don’t think adoption should be a secret.
“I wish my parents had the same level of transparency, but this does not reduce my love for them.
“I was a late bloomer and only passed one subject at O levels. I disappointed them many times when I was younger, but they loved me all the same.”
This adoption discovery came at the lowest point of my life. As if the seabed wasn’t ground deep enough, this experience (took) me on a slippery slope into the dark abyss. My wife and four children are the only people keeping me together. Not omitting my caring grandmother, without whom my entire life would have been a continuous lie.
– Mr Fahmi Rais in a blog entry on Tuesday
Mr Fahmi Rais was a community and youth activist and has held leadership positions in several Malay organisations, including Majlis Pusat and Yayasan Mendaki.
But he is concerned that people would now look at him in a different light after his Chinese ethnicity has come to light.
He said: “In one night, I changed from one race to another. I feel like I’ve lost my bearings – should I continue serving in the Malay community or should I spend my time searching for my Chinese roots?”
MP Zaqy Mohamad, who has spoken on issues about the Malay community, thinks that the community would not consider Mr Fahmi an outsider simply because of this discovery.
“After all, he was raised under the identity of a Malay and spent many years in the community,” he said.
SOCIALISATION
National University of Singapore sociologist Tan Ern Ser said ethnic identity is a “matter of socialisation”.
He explained: “It has nothing to do with skin colour or other so-called racial features.
“A person who is told that he is ‘racially’ a Chinese would probably not take on the Chinese identity and culture unless he seeks to be so for whatever reasons and/or if significant others treat him as Chinese.
“People can also have multiple identities.”
According to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, a Singaporean is allowed to change his race twice – once before the age of 21 and once at or after the age of 21.
Those aged 21 years and above will be required to execute a statutory declaration stating the reason for changing their race and affirming that they will not change their race again.
Source: www.tnp.sg
Seorang lagi calon pembangkang, Encik Fahmi Rais dari Parti Warga Diutamakan (SingFirst), menyentuh isu tudung dalam rapat pilihan raya malam ini.
Encik Fahmi berkata tidak seharusnya menjadi masalah untuk membenarkan wanita Islam dalam perkhidmatan beruniform supaya bertudung, seperti yang dilakukan di sesetengah negara maju.
Cik Nor Lella Mardiiiah Mohd dari Parti Perpaduan Nasional (NSP), turut mempersoalkan isu yang sama malam ini. Kelmarin, calon Parti Demokratik Singapura (SDP), Damanhuri Abas, juga berucap secara panjang lebar tentang isu pemakaian tudung dalam rapat pilihan raya parti itu.
Selain isu tudung, Encik Fahmi, yang bertanding di GRC Tanjong Pagar, juga menyentuh kesulitan yang dihadapi oleh rakyat Singapura untuk mendapatkan pekerjaan kerana persaingan daripada warga asing.
“Sekarang kita nak cari kerja bukan senang. Ada kelulusan pun belum tentu dapat kerja. Anak kita, kita tanggung dari sekolah rendah, menengah sampai universiti.
“Pemerintah beri $400 juta kepada penduduk asing untuk anak mereka datang belajar di sini. Mana pergi masa depan kita?
“Kalau kita hilang pekerjaan kerana kita bersaing dengan bangsa sendiri di Singapura, saya boleh terima. Kita hilang pekerjaan, bersaing dengan PR (Penduduk Tetap), saya rasa kita masih boleh terima.
“Tapi kita hilang pekerjaan, bersaing dengan warga asing yang datang ke sini hanya untuk meraup keuntungan, itu saya tidak boleh terima. Anda boleh terima ke?” kata Encik Fahmi.
Source: http://berita.mediacorp.sg
Parti baru pembangkang Warga Diutamakan, SingFirst mengadakan rapatnya yang pertama di Stadium Jurong.
Turut berucap ialah calon GRC Tanjong Pagar, Fahmi Rais, yang mengetengahkan soal-soal ekonomi rumahtangga, pengangkutan dan pekerjaan.
Encik Fahmi berkata masalah ekonomi masyarakat Melayu melibatkan isu pekerjaan.
“Bagi saya masalah Melayu yang penting soal ekonomi rumahtangga bererti pekerjaan. Ada kerja ada gaji, tidak ada kerja mati. Betul tidak? Soal kerja ini, soal yang penting untuk kita, soal cari nafkah. Tanggungjawab.
Jadi, apabila pekerjaan kita diambil oleh para pekerja asing, kita hendak ke mana? Mereka senang. Dia datang sini, dia bekerja, dia dapat BTO, lepas 5 tahun dia jual dia dapat untung dia ambil semua CPF dia, dia balik negeri, dia hidup senang,” ujar Encik Fahmi.
Source:http://berita.mediacorp.sg
Singaporeans First’s (SingFirst) candidate Fahmi Rais, the only Malay among all the candidates contesting Tanjong Pagar Group Representation Constituency (GRC), said a voice for his community is important, especially if the Government wants to have its policies communicated to this group.
Noting that Tanjong Pagar has not had a Malay Member of Parliament (MP) since becoming a GRC in 1991, Mr Fahmi said: “I’ve come across so many Malays during my walkabouts and many of them are from the lower-income bracket and they may not be very educated, so how is the communication process trickling down to them, I wonder.”
The ruling People’s Action Party’s (PAP) slate for Tanjong Pagar GRC for the Sept 11 elections does not include a Malay candidate. The 48-year-old media consultant said the main issue that has come up during his interactions with Malay residents is that of employment.
The lower-income group is hit particularly hard by the influx of foreign labour as they have to compete directly with them for jobs. This worsens the income gap between the Malay community and others, he added.
If elected, Mr Fahmi said he will make tackling issues concerning the community a priority.
Mr Fahmi is contesting in Tanjong Pagar GRC along with SingFirst’s secretary-general Tan Jee Say, party chairman Ang Yong Guan, market risk manager Chirag Desai and sales executive Melvyn Chiu.
The party plans to hold its first rally tomorrow (Sept 3) at Jurong Stadium.
Source: http://www.todayonline.com