Meet the Malaysian Chinese man who adopted 3 Malay sons: ‘I’m a grandfather now and will never be lonely’

When Michael Tong Wai Siong was 39, he never expected to become a father figure to three Malay boys and have his life transformed by their presence.

“I’ve never been married … Suddenly I had to take care of three children who weren’t mine,” said Tong, who is 55-years-old and ethnic Chinese. “However, I felt this was a task given to me by God and I had to accept the challenge.”

That boy was Rafie Ahmad Fauzi, now a 29-year-old entrepreneur.

“He was just sitting alone, avoiding everyone. I learnt from a caretaker named Umi that Rafie refused to go to school,” Tong recalled. “After visiting Rafie at school and meeting with his teachers, I discovered he had learning difficulties. So I enrolled him at a tuition centre.”

Rafie began to show improvement and interest in learning.

One day, while visiting the orphanage, Tong found a note written by Rafie that questioned why he had lost his parents so early in his life and why he was separated from his two younger brothers.

“It tugged at my heart. Umi suggested it would be better if I adopted Rafie and had him stay with me, as he only listened to me. So I did,” Tong said.

After locating Rafie’s brothers, Rasyid and Abdul Rahman, now aged 28 and 24, in an orphanage in Klang, Selangor, Tong decided to bring them to live with him in Bandar Sri Damansara.

“My mum was concerned,” Tong said. “Why would her second child, who is unmarried, decide to adopt these boys? While she was supportive, she did advise me that it wouldn’t be easy. But she promised to stand by me all the way.”

“The boys are very respectful towards the elderly, so having them in our family is not awkward at all,” Tong added. His sons call his mother popo, a Mandarin term for grandmother, he said.

All of them have their own lives