Teen gets greatest 'Malaysian' gift, thanks to grandma

Free Malaysia Today

76-year-old Sandra Lee has spent the last 10 years of her life fighting for her grandson Edward Tan.    Read More:   Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: http://bit.ly/2Rn6xEV Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on Twitter: http://bit.ly/2OCwH8a  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2OKJbc6 Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3cpbWKK Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/2VUfOrv Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3B1e8lN Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/39dBDbe ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTNews #SandraLee #EdwardTan #ProudMalaysian

Transcript

00:00 10 years. That's how long it took Edward Tan to get his Malaysian citizenship.

00:06 But that would have been impossible without his 76-year-old grandma, Sandra Lee.

00:11 For a decade, Lee embarked on a relentless quest for her grandson's citizenship,

00:17 refusing to accept defeat even after an initial rejection. Tan's struggle started the day he was

00:23 born. Born to a Malaysian father and an Indonesian mother out of wedlock, Tan was not entitled to

00:28 his father's citizenship. This left him stateless, even after he was adopted by his biological father

00:35 and stepmother in 2012. But Lee took it upon herself to remedy her grandson's status.

00:40 Her biggest hurdle? Not knowing where to begin.

00:44 [MUSIC]

00:47 Without any knowledge as to how I actually should approach the problem to overcome the statelessness,

00:56 how can I get him the correct birth certificate? There was a time when somebody told me,

01:03 "This person can get you the birth certificate." So we met up with him and we got cheated of RM6,000.

01:12 Lee found help along the way. Her friend, a lawyer, helped her with the application process.

01:19 But it was not always smooth sailing. Year 12, we started applying.

01:25 And year 13, as I told you, year 13, we got the reply saying, "Tidak berjaya."

01:33 And without any reason. Lee refused to take no for an answer.

01:39 She applied again in 2016. This time, she was adamant in ensuring the Home Ministry

01:45 would not dismiss her grandson's case. And after seven years of endless phone calls,

01:51 letters, and in somewhat of a Christmas miracle, Lee's persistence paid off.

01:55 December 12. December 12, I got the letter.

02:02 Tan feels the same way. I feel happy for now. After getting my citizenship approved,

02:09 so I finally can walk around. No need to be afraid of anything, anywhere.

02:17 And for the first time in many years, Christmas is a joyous event again for Tan and Lee.

02:24 I hope that I can celebrate with my family and my grandma. Of course, my grandma.

02:30 She's been helping me a lot. I would like to say that, be strong and then

02:35 don't give up on your hope. Just keep on doing until you get a citizenship.

02:42 We wish all Malaysians a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

02:50 Natasha Bewst, FMT News.

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