MELAKA - Despite studying behind iron bars and being separated from the outside world, two juvenile offenders proved that they could obtain excellent results.
Juvenile offender from Henry Gurney School (SHG) Amirul, 20, said although he had to retake the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) exam last year, he didn't feel like it was a waste as he successfully obtained 7As, 1C, and 1D.
He said there was nothing more meaningful than gifting this success to his mother, who works as a factory operator and never stopped supporting him to change and be a better person after he entered the school in July 2020.
He said while he was incarcerated, he had lost hope after he was told that his father had died during Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, to the point where he thought he had lost faith in life.
"However, thanks to my mother's endless prayers and support, I finally got up and tried to retake the exam.
"Alhamdulillah, I am grateful for when the teachers told me that I improved and got better results than before," he said, wanting to further study religious studies.
He explained that he was sent to the school after he was found guilty of offences related to oral sex because he was influenced by pornographic videos.
He added that despite not being able to study with proper facilities such as broadband like other SPM candidates, he was grateful that the teacher had helped a lot in the preparation for the examination.
"All of that is not an excuse for me not to study hard; at least this result can make up for my past mistakes, especially after hurting my mother," he said. He will be released next month.
Meanwhile, Dayat, 20, from Pasir Gudang, Johor, also had to retake the exam because he obtained poor results in SPM 2020, where he got no A in any subjects.
He said the patience he learned from three years of school in SHG had taught him to be more human and appreciate his parents, and it had also made him determined to achieve success.
He said that despite being haunted by past incidents of being arrested by the police for drug offences due to peer influence, his parents prayers made him feel more spiritual in facing life.
"I couldn't believe it when it was announced that I got 6As, and surely my father, who works as a security guard, and my mother, who is a housewife, were the happiest people to see my success and change for the better," he said.
He, who currently works part-time as a car washer, said this success gave him motivation to further pursue his studies at the university and achieve his dream of becoming a bank officer.
"Now I am working to earn money for my tuition fees because I don't want to continue troubling my parents, who were once devastated because of my past mistakes," he said.
At the event, five best student awards for SPM 2022 in the SHG category were also presented, including four SHG students from Telok Mas and one SHG student from Keningau, Sabah.