Teo, 107, is oldest person to become a Malaysian
THE STAR
PUTRAJAYA: At 107, Teo Kim Len is the oldest person to become a Malaysian.
The centenarian received her identity card at the National Registration Department (NRD) – three weeks before her 108th birthday on June 9.
“I had a sleepless night ... I was so happy,” she said in Hokkien when met at the NRD office yesterday.
With the MyKad, Teo will now be able to fulfil her wish of stepping foot in China – for the first time in over 60 years – to visit her relatives and friends.
“I still have a brother and a daughter living in China. I have not seen them for more than 50 years,” the elated Teo told Sin Chew Daily.
Born in southern China’s Fujian province, Teo had a tough life after losing her father at a young age.
She took up odd jobs and helped her mother sell dried tofu to support her young siblings.
When she was 46, Teo came to Malaysia to become an odd-job worker. She brought along her two children, one of whom still holds permanent resident status.
The report did not mention her husband.
Over the decades, Teo’s application to be a Malaysian was rejected five times until her perseverance paid off yesterday.
She wished that her son too would be accepted as a Malaysian soon.
Teo also shared her secret to longevity, saying that she was careful with her diet which consisted mainly of oats, bread and brown rice noodle.
She was accompanied to the NRD by her daughter-in-law, grandson and Gerakan public complaints bureau chief Lau Hoi Keong.
