Rita, 25, in an interview with BERNAMA.
Pic: Mohd Huzaini Daud
By Norshazlina Norazman
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 (Bernama) -- Erni Dekritawati Yuliana Buhari, 25, nudged into the limelight by the death of her mother cosmetics queen Datuk Sosilawati Lawiya, seems to have a high emotional tolerance level.
The eldest of six siblings was hardly seen shedding tears in public in the wake of news that her millionaire mother had been murdered, but external appearance can belie inner feelings.
"Yes, I may seem to be calm. Deep inside, I am very sad, but I do not want to be visibly in tears because I cannot bear to see my siblings crying.
"Let our sadness be confined to the family. We do not want to be accused of seeking sympathy. We have to carry on with our lives, although our mother is no more," said Rita, as she is fondly called, at the head office in Kampung Baru of Nouvelle Beauty Centre Sdn Bhd, the company running the cosmetics empire established by her mother.
Her siblings are Erwan Suwari Ridzuan, 24, Md Erwan Nasri, 23, Erni Erinawati Sofea, 21, Erni Reenilawati, 20, and Siti Nur Fatimah, 13. All the children were born from Sosilawati's marriage to Bukhari Muhammad, her first husband.
Sosilawati, 47, went missing on Aug 30 after a trip to Banting over a land deal. Also missing were her driver Kamaruddin Shamsudin, 44, CIMB Bank officer Noorhisham Mohammad, 38, and lawyer Ahmad Kamil Abdul Karim, 32, who had gone with her.
Police found out that they had been murdered, their bodies burnt and the ashes thrown into a river in the vicinity of Tanjung Sepat near Banting, Selangor.
Last Wednesday, lawyer N. Patmanabhan, 41, and farm workers T. Thilaiyalagan, 19, R. Matan, 20, and R. Khatavarayan, 30, were charged in the Teluk Datok Magistrate's Court in Banting with the murder of the four people.
Yesterday, K. Sarawanan, 19, and U. Suresh, 26, pleaded guilty to four counts of disposing of evidence in relation to the four murders and were sentenced to the maximum seven years jail on each count, the sentences to run concurrently.
Rita, who has a Masters' degree in International Business from the Universiti of Nottingham, has taken over her mother's business which, she said, was running smoothly.
She admits that she has much to learn about the business and has to have total focus.
"This is my mother's legacy. I do not want to disappoint her. It is my turn to carry on the business and I pray that it will remain successful," she said.
-- BERNAMA
