http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/24/nation/3112211&sec=nation

No more NS for my kids, says dad of trainee in coma
By SYED AZHAR

KOTA BARU: The father of national service trainee Ahmad Al-Hashyiemi Md Hussein, who is in a coma after falling into a monsoon drain, will not allow his other children to participate in the programme.

Mohd Hussein Yunus, 45, said he was traumatised by the incident and would not allow daughter Nur Amirah to take part in the program if she was drafted. Nur Amirah will be sitting for the SPM examination this year.

“Which father would not be affected by this incident? My son is still in a coma,” he said when met at the Intensive Care Unit of the Raja Perempuan Zainab II Hospital yesterday.

“I am not going to allow my son to continue even if he recovers,” he added.

On Jan 1, Ahmad Al-Hashyiemi, 18, fell into a drain at the Selama NS camp and was treated at the camp’s medical centre.

He was diagnosed with shoulder pains and his parents’ application to have him continue the programme in Pasir Mas was subsequently approved.

Later, he went into a coma after being diagnosed with lung infection.

Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Abu Seman Yusop, who visited Ahmad Al-Hashyiemi at the hospital yesterday, said the camp commandant had taken every safety measure to get the participants away from the flooding camp at the time.

Ahmad Al-Hashyiemi was given the best possible care and attention by the relevant authorities, he added.

He also said that based on the briefing by the specialists at the hospital, Ahmad Al-Hashyiemi was recovering but was uncertain when he would be transferred to an ordinary ward.