KOTA SAMARAHAN - About 20 years ago, Mr Ngu Ee Kiong, 59, decided to quit his job as a lorry driver at a timber company in order to carry his daughter to school every day.

His daughter Nyok Ping, 28, suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy. The family is from Kota Samarahan in Sarawak, Malaysia.

Mr Ngu's sacrifices and efforts paid off on Monday (Nov 14) when he witnessed his daughter receive her scroll after completing her master's degree in Economics and Business from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas), reported New Straits Times Online.

Ms Ngu was born with the disability and has been dependent on a wheelchair.

"I can't walk and my hands can't even carry anything more than 5kg. It was very tough for me and my family.

"We have gone through a lot of challenges and I can't recall how many times that I wanted to give up," she said.

"My father quit his job as a lorry driver at a timber site in Sibu when I reached Year Six. My mother could not to carry me any more as I was getting too heavy," she said.

Ms Ngu said her father then started selling kueh at the market and coffee shops to earn money and make time for his children.

Ms Ngu was among 4,276 graduates at Unimas' 20th Convocation ceremony, which began on Monday.

When asked how he felt about his daughter's achievement, Mr Ngu was fighting to hold back his tears.

"I am happy but when I think about how tough the journey (to reach this stage) was and how much difficulties my daughter had faced, I'm still very sad," he said.