KUALA LUMPUR: Whenever veteran singer Zaiton Sameon returns to her home village in Rembau, Negri Sembilan, certain individuals get on her nerves, as they call her "gila" (insane).
"How can I be out of my mind? I'm not "gila", I've never harmed people, I have many friends, I drive my own car and remember my own lyrics," said Zaiton, 66, in an interview with Harian Metro Online yesterday.
Zaiton also lamented that certain individuals in show business "backstabbed" her, claiming that she could no longer sing.
"These people misled many concert organisers, and as a result, many organisers did not want to invite me to perform at their events.
"They claimed that I could not remember my lyrics, but that's not true."
Yesterday, Zaiton received a handicapped people's card (Kad OKU) from the Federal Territory National Welfare Department, as she had been categorised as a handicapped person with traumatic brain injuries.
The card also entitles her to a People's Housing Project (PPR) home in the federal capital.
Zaiton lives in a rented house in Bukit Indah, Ampang with her adopted daughter Sikah Ismail. Their monthly rent is RM800.
Zaiton suffered serious head injuries in a car accident in 1990. Her son Azirwan Abu Bakar, 13, died in the accident.
During the two-year Movement Control Order from 2020 to 2021, Zaiton focused on promoting her own traditional rendang recipe, Rendang Nasib, based on a recipe that she acquired from her late mother.
Zaiton's best known song Menaruh Harapan won Best Song in Anugerah Juara Lagu 1987.