I saw centre engulfed in fire, says tahfiz centre principal

KUALA LUMPUR: The principal of Pusat Tahfiz Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah, the Islamic religious centre which was engulfed in flames that claimed 23 lives, told the High Court that he was informed about the fire at 5.30pm on Sept 14, 2017.
Ustaz Mohd Zahid Mahmood, 48 (pix), said it was the deputy warden at the centre who informed him about the fire.
"He (deputy warden) said the centre was on fire. His voice was panicky. I asked whether the fire was small or serious, how was the students, he cried," said the principal during examination-in-chief by Kuala Lumpur prosecution director Othman Abdullah.
Mohd Zahid, who is the 17th witness, said he was at his house, which was about 300m from the tahfiz centre, when the fire broke out, and immediately took his car key and drove to the centre after being informed about the fire.
On arrival, he said the fire was burning fiercely and there were firemen working to put out the flame.
Earlier, Mohd Zahid, who is also the founder of the tahfiz centre, said he set up the centre in 2002 to help the poor and its operation was funded through public donations.
He said he and his friends went to Terengganu, Kelantan and Kedah where they found 20 people from less affordable families and brought them to study at the centre, which was initially located at Taman Sri Watan before moving to its permanent site at Lot 75, Jalan Keramat Hujung six months later.
"We moved to the building that caught fire about nine or 10 months earlier," he said, adding that the move to the building was temporary pending completion of renovation works at the permanent site.
He said from the initial 20 students, the centre grew and the enrolment increased to 41 students, including 21 who perished in the fire.
Mohd Zahid said the public continued to donate to the centre after the tragedy and until last January, the amount was RM8 million.
He said the money would be spent on repairing the building that was destroyed in the fire, operation cost of the centre for two years, as well as to be distributed to the next-of-kin of victims killed in the fire, as well as students who survived in the tragedy.
Mohd Zahid was testifying on the sixth day trial of two juveniles, then aged 16, who were jointly charged with murdering and causing the death of the 23 inmates at the tahfiz centre at Jalan Keramat Hujung, Kampung Datuk Keramat, here, between 4.15am and 6.45am on Sept 14, 2017.
They each face 23 counts of murder under Section 302 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34 of the same law, and faced the mandatory death sentence, upon conviction.
However, Section 97(1) of the Child Act 2001 states that a death sentence shall not be pronounced or recorded against a person convicted of an offence if the child is under the age of 18, and in lieu of the death sentence, as provided under Section 97 (2) of the same law, the court shall order the person to be detained at the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
Section 94 of the same law also empowers the court to order the parents or guardians of the child offender to pay fine or compensation.
In the 5.15am incident on Sept 14, 21 students and two teachers died when they were trapped on the third floor of the religious residential school hostel which was on fire.
The hearing before Judge Datuk Azman Abdullah continues on July 10. — Bernama