DUNGUN, March 14 (Bernama) -- Despite nearly two decades having passed since Sharlinie Mohd Nashar went missing without any new developments, her mother Suraya Ahmad, 46, remains steadfast in hoping that her daughter will one day return to the family.
Suraya said she prays every day and hopes deeply to be reunited with her third child of four siblings, who disappeared at the age of four in Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya, Selangor on Jan 9, 2008.
“I still hope to meet Nini (Sharlinie) again in a safe and healthy condition, and I believe she is still alive. Nini, who was born on Jan 30, 2004, is now 22 years old this year.
“If we are destined to meet again one day, I believe I would still recognise her because her face closely resembles my second child, Sharliena, who is now 26,” she said when met at her home in Kampung Padang Pulut here today.
Suraya, who is now a single mother after separating from her former husband Mohd Nashar Mat, 48, in 2018, admitted that her longing for Sharlinie becomes especially strong whenever Hari Raya Aidilfitri approaches.
She said Sharlinie was always cheerful during Aidilfitri and would be excited to show off the new clothes bought for her.
“Since she (Sharlinie) disappeared, every Aidilfitri celebration feels incomplete,” she said.
For now, she said she can only ease her longing by looking at photographs of her daughter and gently touching two sets of clothes in pink and yellow that Sharlinie used to wear, which she still keeps until today.
However, Suraya said her longing for Sharlinie is somewhat eased by the close relationship she shares with her three other children, as well as the presence of her two grandsons aged four and two, who bring joy to her life.
When asked about her current life, Suraya said she now works as a shop assistant at a food stall near her home to support the family.
She also makes and sells banana chips on a small scale to supplement her income.
Sharlinie’s disappearance in 2008 shocked the nation as the incident occurred when the child was walking home with her sister Sharliena from a playground about 200 metres from their rented house in Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya.
Although thousands of posters about her disappearance were distributed and various efforts were undertaken by many parties to locate her, no information on Sharlinie’s whereabouts has surfaced to this day.
-- BERNAMA
