Exploitation, Child Labour, and Manipulation Unveiled
KUALA LUMPUR: A former member of a controversial religious group has come forward to expose its inner workings, shedding light on practices involving polygamy, child exploitation, and financial manipulation under the guise of charity.
Mr. Kamal, who was once part of the group, described a culture where male members were “gifted” wives as a reward for loyalty, with many men having three or more wives by the age of 25. Large families were the norm, with 15 to 20 children being common in the community.
“For some, it might seem glamorous,” Kamal said, referring to the allure of multiple wives and large families. Kamal himself, married once and father to two children, recalled the group’s infamous Obedient Wives Club, which gained global attention in 2011. The group’s then-vice president, Dr. Rohaya Mohamad, controversially claimed that sexual prowess was more important in marriage than traditional roles like cooking or parenting.
Tactics of the Polygamous Group
Mr. Razali, another former member, recounted how after his first child was born in 2013, he and his wife were assigned to a hostel, where they were responsible for 15 children who weren’t their own. These hostels were later rebranded as charity homes for “orphans.” However, Razali revealed that many of the children were not orphans at all; they had parents but were falsely labeled as orphans for financial gain.
According to Razali, the group made a substantial portion of its income from donations meant for the children. Donations of food, such as rice, were often sold to restaurants instead of being used for the children’s well-being.
“The group used the children to generate money, but the profits went to the leaders,” Razali explained, adding that most of the group’s businesses failed despite not paying their workers. He also claimed that children in the hostels were often malnourished, and when he raised concerns about their conditions, he was placed under “quarantine” for speaking out.
Mr. Kamal highlighted the psychological control exerted over children born into the group. Denied formal education, they were indoctrinated from a young age and taught to distrust anyone outside the group’s leadership.
“They were cut off from reality and trapped within the system,” Kamal said. “What they were doing was a grave sin in Islam.”
Donations
Mrs. Dalilah, another former member, shared her experience of being one of the children sent out to collect donations for the so-called orphans.
“When we went out, we got to see the outside world,” she said during a press conference in Selangor on Friday.
The revelations provide a disturbing glimpse into the workings of the group, exposing how vulnerable children were exploited, manipulated, and denied a proper upbringing, all while the leaders reaped financial rewards under the guise of charity and religious piety.
Original content from Channel News Asia
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