PASIR MAS: ‘When there is a will, there is a way’ is the best proverb to describe the strong will of Suriati Mat Zin, 44, who decided to make a living by selling doughnuts, despite having to depend on a wheelchair to move around.
The mother to a 13-year-old daughter also bears the responsibility as the sole breadwinner of the family after her husband Zainal Abidin Ayub, 49, was paralysed from the waist down due to an accident in 2017.
Suriati, who lives in Kampung Batu Karang here, said the family used to depend solely on her husband’s income as a rubber tapper to make ends meet.
“The idea to sell doughnuts came after my husband lost his source of income as he was unable to work due to his condition. Besides, I do not want to continue depending on other people’s assistance,” she said to reporters at her house, here today.
According to Suriati, she was involved in a road crash in 2012 that broke her right knee and made her incapable of walking but she fully recovered two years later.
“Unfortunately, I got into an accident again last year when I skidded while riding a motorcycle that led to severe injuries on my legs.
“Due to the second incident, both of my legs become weak that I have to use a wheelchair to continue living,” said Suriati, who receives a RM500 monthly aid from the Social Welfare Department.
Despite being a person with disabilities (PwD), Suriati said she was able to produce about 100 pieces of doughnuts daily with the assistance of her daughter, Aina Zulaikha.
Priced at 30 sen per piece, she placed the doughnuts at three shops nearby her house and Suriati was glad that her cakes always sold out.
“I start kneading the dough as early as three o’clock in the morning. I cannot make in large quantity because I knead manually by hands.
“Because of the accident, I get tired easily and both of my hands are not strong enough to knead the flour for a long time,” she said.
In the meantime, Suriati said she was hoping for a three-wheeled motorcycle contribution from any quarters to ease her movement in transporting the doughnuts to the respective shops.
Prior to the interview, the family received a visit from Tuan Zaimah Raja Omar, a representative from the Rantau Panjang ThirdForce, a non-governmental organisation, who handed over cash assistance of RM200 and an automatic kneading machine worth RM1,800. – Bernama
