By Muammar Hadi
GOMBAK, 16 August 2022: Every parent hopes to witness their children graduate by seeing them walk across the convocation stage to get their scrolls, but for Ab Razak Ibrahim and Nor Zaliha Othman, receiving a posthumous award was not an experience they expected.
Nor Hikmah from Kemaman, Terengganu, was a student in the Kulliyyah of Dentistry (KOD) and one of the two recipients of the posthumous award in the fifth session of the 37th IIUM Convocation Ceremony on Monday (15 August).
Ab Razak received the award on behalf of his daughter, who passed away due to Crohn’s disease on Friday, 11th March, earlier this year.
The award was presented to him by the IIUM President, Tan Sri Samsudin Osman, witnessed by the crowd who stood in silence as a mark of respect, followed by the recitation of Surah Al-Fatihah.
Her father explained that her passing was not something they had expected because her condition seemed to improve on her first visit to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) but got worse after her next visit to the hospital.
The parents explained that they came to celebrate the success of not just Allahyarhamah Nor Hikmah but also the success of her fellow friends in completing their degrees with flying colours.
They promised to attend the convocation ceremony and receive the posthumous award not just for her sake but also because they were encouraged by her friends, family members, and the university to attend.
Her father shared her personality with IIUMToday that although she did not talk much, she was a very bright student as she studied very hard.
She graduated from the Kulliyyah of Dentistry as the best pediatric student, said her mother.
œShe was very kind to us and would never tell us she was out of money, explained her father proving that she was very considerate and independent.
He also said that although she did not get the chance to serve the community, they accepted what God planned for them because accepting fate is the characteristic of a pious individual.
Asked for any advice to parents out there who might be suffering from the loss of their child, her father stressed that parents need to understand that God took away their children’s lives because He loves them.
Meanwhile, her mother mentioned, œOnly people who have lost their child will know how it feels. She advised them to accept Gods decision so that they could continue their life.
Both parents agreed that there is wisdom behind what happened to their daughter and the pain that they have gone through, which is represented by their daughters beautiful name, ˜Hikmah.***