Single mum fears for eldest daughter’s safety after months of no contact

JOHOR BARU: A single mother here has been having sleepless nights over her 21-year-old daughter, whom she has not seen for over five months.

Former beautician Pau Yiew Ping, 47, said the last time she saw Liew Jia Yee was in August last year after the latter went to Singapore for a new job.

“My daughter was working as a piano teacher in Singapore for about two years before she lost her job around June.

“She returned to Johor while looking for other job opportunities. Eventually, she told me that she had secured an admin job in Singapore.

“On Aug 28, she went to Singapore for the new job, and that was the last time I saw her,” she told a press conference at the Johor Bersatu associate wing’s office here on Friday (Jan 10).

Pau said that while she was initially able to contact her daughter through text messages, the responses became shorter and less frequent over time.

“She usually replied very quickly and gave rather lengthy responses, but that changed after she returned to Singapore the second time. I felt like I was talking to someone else.

“Eventually, she stopped replying altogether. I have been reaching out and calling everyone she knows, including my ex-husband and her friends, but no one has any idea where she went,” she said, adding that the last text Liew replied to was on Oct 4.

Pau, who is currently unemployed, said she had lodged police reports about her missing daughter in both Malaysia and Singapore.

“I later learned through the Singapore police that she was at Changi Airport on the night of Aug 28, the same day she left Johor.

“She may have taken a flight to another country, but I do not know which one,” she said, adding that her other daughters, who are 15 and 18, have also been trying to reach Liew through mutual friends and social media.

Pau said her main worry was that her daughter had fallen victim to a job scam or was in trouble somewhere far from Malaysia and Singapore.

“I will not be able to sleep peacefully until I know that she is safe. If she sees this (news article), I hope she will give me a call to put my mind at ease.

“That is my only wish,” she said, adding that she was hoping for help from the public to search for her eldest child.

The Johor Bersatu associate wing’s complaints bureau chief Lim Thow Siang urged anyone who knows Liew or has seen her to get in touch with the authorities.