1,000 STRONG SULUK COMMUNITY IN JOHOR

THE murder of Nurul Nadirah Abdullah, or Dirang, has resulted in the 1,000-odd residents here forming their own security units to protect the families and children here.

The residents, comprising mostly Sabahans from the Suluk community, also want the local council to rebuild the damaged perimeter fencing which separates the four blocks of apartments from the adjacent oil palm plantation.

Dirang's abductors had smuggled the little girl out through a break in the fence.

Community leader Jaharah Kujasan said it took a tragedy for them to realise they could not take the safety of their children for granted.

"Dirang's death has affected us and we are now taking security measures seriously.

"There are more than 1,000 people staying here and we have to take their safety into consideration. I have children too. I see the children here as my own. I remember Dirang who was a lovely and innocent child. I do not want a repeat of such an incident."

Dirang was abducted on her way to a grocery store on March 1. Her charred remains were found a week later at an abandoned project in Nusa Damai.

Her remains were buried on Wednesday at the Kampung Sungai Pertanian Muslim cemetery in Masai.

Dirang's biological father, who was one of the four suspects arrested, was brought to the cemetery in handcuffs to pay his last respects. A large crowd had turned up at the funeral.

The other three suspects are believed to be drug addicts with criminal records. Two of them were a couple living in a vacant unit across from the victim's place on the same floor.

Residents' community chairman Muzafar Abdul Rahim said the incident was an eye-opener.

"Although there have been cases of petty thefts in the past, this is the first such case reported.

"We hope the authorities will help us to make this area more secure."

Another resident, Merlinda Budin, said the incident had left parents frightened and jittery.

"Now everyone is over-protective of their children."

They are not allowed to be on their own, even within the compound.

"This place is never going to be the same again, all because of some evil people who have turned our lives upside down."

Meanwhile Dirang's mother Roselyn Alan, 25, said she was considering moving out from the area but would wait for her husband, Lima Medeng, to get a permanent job first.

Roselyn said this place held memories of her daughter and they were too painful to bear.

The 5-year-old girl, the second in a family of three, was believed to have been murdered before her body was burnt.

Initial investigations point to revenge as the motive as two of the suspects had several run-ins with her family.

The two, a couple, were believed to be drug addicts who committed petty thefts in the neighbourhood and were often chided by Dirang's family.