One exception was Dr Malik Yatam, the country's first inmate to earn a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) while serving a prison sentence. Tears flowed as he hugged the Sultan, who had promised to sponsor Malik's umrah trip with his wife, a civil servant. He eventually completed his PhD dissertation in business administration from Open University Malaysia (OUM), writing a dissertation on the entrepreneurial skills of convicts. Now an advocate of education, Malik said he gives motivational talks to youth in the hope they will be as determined as him. But this is the gem - he met a VVIP prisoner who approached him for advice on whether he should pursue his PhD on learning of his successful story, which had gone around the prison.

Source: The Star February 04, 2026 14:45 UTC