ALOR SETAR, Mek Mulung traditional theatre activist Saipol Bahari Mohd Iman, died last night at a medical centre here, believed to be of a heart attack. He was 47.
His elder brother, Mohd Ridzwan, said Saipol Bahari was rushed to the medical centre after he experienced difficulty breathing and died at about 10 pm.
“I was on my way home when I received a call from his wife asking me to take him to the hospital. However, I later received another call informing me that he had passed away.
“A few hours before his death, he attended a family gathering and showed no signs of illness. We are all shocked by his sudden demise,” he told reporters here.
Saipol Bahari, who was the Kedah Cultural Heritage Movement Association (AKRAB) chairman, was part of the delegation that recently travelled to Kasane, Botswana, to receive UNESCO recognition on Mek Mulung, which was inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.
Saipol Bahari received the Performing Arts Practitioner Award at the Kedah State Arts and Culture Awards 2023 last month.
Meanwhile, Kedah National Department for Culture and Arts (JKKN) director Sabarina Masadi described his death of as a great loss to traditional arts in Kedah.
“Mek Mulung is fading away and he worked hard with his team to bring the legacy of Old Kedah to the world and successfully gaining global recognition,” she said.
Saipol Bahari will be buried this afternoon at the Taman Uda Muslim cemetery near here.
Source: BERNAMA News Agency