KOTA KINABALU, Dec 5 — The Coroner’s Court here was today told that teachers at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama (SMKA) Tun Datu Mustapha had been under immense stress and were afraid to go out in public following intense social media “attacks” by netizens over the death of student Zara Qairina Mahathir.

A former Senior Assistant of Student Affairs (PK HEM) at the school,  Asni Marjan, 56, said the barrage of criticism and online hostility had led several teachers to delete their Facebook accounts, while some became fearful of going to shopping malls, shops or even the market.

“We have done our best. Among the teachers, I am the oldest. They call me ‘father’. My role is to comfort them. They face netizens every day. I constantly try to motivate them. I have never cried in front of them… but here, I cry,” he said while wiping away tears.

Asni, who has been posted to the Papar District Education Office (PPD) since October, said teachers had been subjected to baseless, wild and slanderous allegations online.

The 57th witness, who is set to retire next January, said this in response to questioning by lawyer Shahlan Jufry,  representing Zara Qairina’s mother, before Coroner Amir Shah Amir Hassan.

When Shahlan suggested that what happened to Zara Qairina was similar to what the teachers experienced, except that, in Zara Qairina’s case, the pressure came from senior students rather than netizens, Asni responded by saying “I’m not sure”.

Zara Qairina was confirmed dead at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on July 17, a day after she was found unconscious in a drain near her school dormitory. — Bernama