From carpenter to millionaire
May. Rafizi who had just completed his
KUALA LUMPUR: Barely two weeks ago,
1 Abdul Razak was just another village
carpenter earning RM500 a month.
His house in Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, was an
2 oasis of calm with an occasional visitor or
two.
However, things have not been the same
3 since Hari Raya Aidiladha – when news
came that he was a millionaire after winning
the grand prize of Telekom Malaysia
Berhad’s (TM) RM1 Million Reward
Programme.
Ever since then, Abdul Razak and his family
4 have been treated like royalty in their village.
An endless stream of visitors have been
making a beeline to their humble home and
marriage proposals for his children have
been coming thick and fast.
The 53-year-old father of six is still in a daze
5 over his good fortune even as he received a
RM1 million cheque presented by Women,
Family and Community Development
Minister Datuk Shahrizat Jalil at an event
held at Menara TM near here.
Abdul Razak has his eldest son, Mohd
6 Rafizi, 24, to thank for his windfall.
Mohd Rafizi had come across the
7 programme’s website while surfing the
internet at a cyber café in Pasir Puteh last
studies at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
(UTM) Skudai, had a “brainstorming”
session with his family and came up with
the winning slogan: Dengan ganjaran RM1
juta dari TM, saya akan bersama TM
merintis kemungkinan, bersama Celcom
menggenggam kejayaan, bersama TMNet
menerokai pasaran (With the RM1 million
reward from TM, I can now be with TM
pioneering possibilities, with Celcom
grasping success and with TMNet
exploring the market).
8 When asked about his future plans, Abdul
Razak said he would build a more
comfortable house for his children and go
to Mecca. He would also put aside some
money for his children’s education and
invest the rest.
9 At the ceremony, Telekom Malaysia Bhd
chief executive officer Datuk Abdul Wahid
Omar advised Abdul Razak to spend his
money wisely and invest in the Amanah
Saham Bumiputera.
10 In contrast to her husband’s calm
demeanour, housewife Hamidah Mat Isa,
48, could scarcely contain her happiness.
“I still can’t believe it, it feels like a dream,”
she gushed.
11 Prior to the presentation, Abdul Razak and
his wife were chauffeured from their house
to board, for the first time ever, a business-
class flight to Kuala Lumpur and brought to
a five-star hotel in Subang.
 Based on the text given, read and discuss these questions.

1. How much did Abdul Razak win in the contest?

2. From paragraph 1, what is Abdul Razak’s job and how much has he been
earning a month?

3. From paragraph 2, how is his life described before winning the contest?

4. Give some examples from paragraph 4 of other people’s reaction upon knowing
of Abdul Razak’s winning?

5. From paragraph 8, what does Abdul Razak plan to do with the money?

6. From paragraph 10, how does his wife’s reaction differ from Abdul Razak’s upon
winning the contest?

7. From paragraph 11, how was the couple treated before the prize presentation?

8. What would YOU do if you won a million ringgit?

9. Would winning the million ringgit change you?

10. Do you think your friends and relatives would treat you differently if you won a
million ringgit? How so?

Language Enrichment

Barely Gushed

Scarcely Put aside

Good fortune An oasis of calm

Making a beeline An oasis of calm

Endless stream of visitors