KOTA KINABALU: Being selected as part of the first group from Sabah to perform the Hajj this year has become a cherished memory for several prospective pilgrims, including three elderly cousins.
Lamnih Awang Raya, 68; Ratinah Suara, 72; and Jerani A Raya, 72, expressed their surprise and gratitude for being chosen together as ‘Duyufurrahman’ or guests of Allah, and were thankful for the opportunity to perform the pilgrimage together in the Holy Land.
Lamnih, a mother of seven from Kampung Petagas, shared that she had been registered and saving with Tabung Haji since 2009 before being informed that she was selected to go to Makkah this year.
I am grateful, even though I have never performed Umrah, it is my good fortune to perform Hajj this year,” she told Bernama during the event celebrating the Sabah Hajj pilgrims, attended by the Yang Dipertua Negeri of Sabah Tun Juhar Mahiruddin and his wife Toh Puan Norlidah R.M Jasni, at the Sabah International Convention Centre here tonight.
Also present were Chief M
inister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Shahelmey Yahya, and Sabah Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Mohd Arifin Mohd Arif.
A total of 134 prospective Hajj pilgrims from Sabah will depart from Kota Kinabalu International Airport tonight to Kuala Lumpur International Airport, before leaving for the Holy Land early tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Ratinah expressed her disbelief that her long-awaited dream to perform Hajj since her youth was finally coming true, and she hopes for a smooth journey.
“The three of us cousins are going to Makkah together, so we will have company for worship and to fulfill the necessary rituals there,” she said calmly after receiving a briefing from Tabung Haji.
Mohd Haziq Wazini Saidil, 26, from Membakut, said he was grateful for the opportunity to perform Hajj at a young age.
The second of three siblings said his parents had registered all three of them since 2009.
‘Initially, all three of us siblings were selected to perform Hajj, but since my yo
unger sibling is still studying and my sister just recently got a job, they postponed their trip, so I am going alone,” he said.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency
