SEREMBAN: Aug 31 is a date that the late Muhammad Noh Muhammad Isa, 53, always looked forward to every year, to participate in the National Day parade together with his People's Volunteer Corps (RELA) team.

This was shared by Ahmad Harraz, 20, of his late father, Muhammmad Noh, who was the Negeri Sembilan RELA Contingent parade leader, who died after collapsing while participating in the parade in conjunction with the 66th National Day celebrations, at the Dataran Majlis Bandaraya Seremban, here yesterday.

Ahmad Harraz, who was part of 45-strong contingent during yesterday's parade, said that his father always did his best for the team, and was most eager to start training in conjunction with the celebration.

"Abah (Dad) was very excited and happy waiting for the arrival of Aug 31. It is the date he was always waiting for, as he wanted to see that RELA is respected by the public. RELA is not like other uniformed bodies, such as police or firemen, who are highly-regarded by many.

"Abah wanted RELA to be seen that way; that's why he was fully committed. He wanted RELA on a par with other uniformed forces, including during the National Day parade, so he took it seriously," he said, adding that he and his sister Qistina Amierah, 21, have been with RELA on a part-time basis for the past few years.

He said this when met at the family residence during the visit of the state RELA director, senior assistant commissioner Muhammad Faiz Musa and the state Social Security Organisation (Socso) director Nur Muhammad Bakhtir Mohamad Akhir, here.

The late Muhammad Noh was reported to have collapsed and lost consciousness around 10 am yesterday, before being confirmed dead at the Tuanku Ja'afar Hospital (HTJ) here, and the post-mortem found the cause of death to be a heart problem.

On yesterday's incident, Ahmad Harraz recalled that in the morning before the parade, his father did not show any signs of being unwell or tired.

"I was behind my dad and holding the flag. At the end of the parade, he suddenly fainted. I barely managed to get hold onto him and members in the contigent managed to catch my dad.

He said that he continued with the parade thinking that his father would be fine until he discovered that his father was admitted to the hospital. Rushing there, he was told that his father had already passed away.

Ahmad Harraz, who is a second semester student majoring in Economics (Islamic Finance) at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI), said that he will always remember his late father's advice to always be responsible in carrying out his duties, apart from looking after his family.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Noh's widow, Maniliza Abdul Hamid, 47, recalled that the night before the celebration, her husband complained of fatigue, but insisted on continuing his duties as he was the contingent leader for the parade.

"He often complained of chest pain but refused to go to the hospital. There was no sign that he would leave us so soon. My husband joked that he was going to pass out tomorrow (the day of the incident), maybe because he was tired, but I didn't think anything of it. We have been planning for a family vacation next week, as he said that he wanted to rest," she said.

Earlier, Muhammad Faiz, during the visit, said that the deceased was a fighter and hero in RELA; his passing will be deeply felt by the entire team as Muhammad Noh was a person who liked to help others.

-- BERNAMA