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Opposition Leader’s Communications Chief Imran Khan dies

Last Updated on Tuesday, 28 September 2021, 7:11 by Denis Chabrol

Imran Khan

Director of Communications in the Opposition Leader’s Office, Imran Khan died of COVID-19 early Tuesday morning, a senior Health Ministry official confirmed

He was not vaccinated. In an initial reaction to Khan’s passing, Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon said he was “shocked”.

Shadow Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde said, “I am devastated. Imran was my friend. He was an extremely talented and brilliant man.”

Mr. Forde used the opportunity to raise concerns about the care being provide at the COVID-19 hospital. “I am concerned about the quality of medical care that is provided at the COVID-19 hospital at Liliendaal,” he said.

Before returning to Guyana to get into active politics with the Alliance For Change (AFC), he had headed corporate communications at the West Indies Cricket Board.

Up to the time of his passing, Khan had been a senior member of the AFC.

Khan studied communications at the University of Guyana and the University of the West Indies.

He is survived by his wife, Attorney-at-Law Tammy Khan, who has been discharged from the COVID hospital and has been receiving home care.

On September 26, 2021 at 3:55 PM, he had held out hope for his own recovery. “Thank you for all your love, prayers, messages of encouragement and support. I am overwhelmed beyond explanation and I am in excellent spirits. Difficult to respond individually to everyone but in time I will,” he said on his Facebook page.

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Condolences to his family .

Source

Khan had told friends he was extremely careful regarding the virus, conducting most of his activities virtually. He believes he contracted the virus recently when he stepped out to attend a meeting. He said he later found out the person he sat next to had contacted the virus.

Django

Former Head of DPI succumbs to COVID

-Harmon, AFC offer condolences

Imran Khan

Imran Khan

September 28 ,2021

Source

Former Director of the Department of Public Information (DPI) and Head of Communications for the Opposition, Imran Khan died this morning  in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Liliendaal Infectious Disease Hospital almost a week after he was rushed there.

Khan, who was well known in the local media landscape and has been prominent on the political front in the last few years as he was a senior member of the Alliance for Change, tested positive for the virus on September 15th.

On September 24th from his hospital bed he asked for prayers as he said he could not fight alone.

“By the grace and strength of God I am still fighting this but it is getting lonely. I need more help and support. Please help me fight more. I can’t do this alone. Thank you,” he posted.

But the following day (September 25th) he was in a more upbeat mood as he posted that he was doing much better.

“Thank you for all your love, prayers, messages of encouragement and support. I am overwhelmed beyond explanation and I am in excellent spirits. Difficult to respond individually to everyone but in time I will.

Please be assured that I am fighting and there is no giving up.

One love!”, was what he posted.

Sources say that Khan had not taken a COVID-19 vaccine.

Stabroek News understands that Khan’s wife, attorney-at-law Tammy Khan, is also stricken with the virus and was in the COVID ICU as well but has since been released.

Before returning to Guyana in 2015 to work, Khan lived in Antigua where he worked in the public relations department of the West Indies Cricket Board.

Khan’s death is one of the over 140 that have occurred for the month of September, the deadliest month since COVID hit Guyana in March 2020. Infection rates have also been extremely high for this month with some 5700 new infections.

Leader of the Opposition, Joseph Harmon issued the following statement this morning:

It is with a heavy heart that I write on my own behalf and that of the APNU-AFC coalition to announce the untimely death of our friend and colleague Imran Khan who served as Communications Director in the office of the Leader of the Opposition up to today.

To his wife, Tamara, and other family members we offer our deepest condolences and regret. When we read his upbeat note on Sunday asking for a fruit salad and praising coconut water we assumed he had passed the worst and was well on the way to recovery. The suddenness of his death some hours later attributed to acute respiratory failure has been a terrible shock to us all.

Imran was a passionate member of the coalition at the helm of public information. He was a Guyanese who believed that all Guyanese deserved a just and good life and used all his efforts to ensure that access to information underpinned that right. When he returned from his life in Antigua to join the coalition through the AFC he came with eagerness and an energy that was exemplary.

Our grief is profound. Guyana has lost a true son.

The AFC issued the following statement:

Alliance For Change mourns the passing of Imran Khan

It is with deep sadness and tremendous pain that the Alliance For Change regrets the passing of one of its finest members  Imran Khan.

Imran was committed member of the AFC and later the APNU+AFC coalition who epitomized some exceptional qualities – youth, commitment, enthusiasm and resistance.

Guyana was everything to Imran Khan and prior to the 2015 he remigrated from Antigua to “contribute to the struggle” as he would often say.  He joined the Alliance For Change and brought his exceptional  knowledge of the media and public relations environment to the day-to-day operations of our small Party allowing us to “bat above our league”.  His unmatched creativity, knowledge of the digital media environment and excellent writing skills were seen in two election campaigns and while he managed the Department of Public Information which he rebranded and reorganized in 2015 as its’ Director of Public Information.

Most importantly Imran loved the simple things in life, gaffing with ordinary citizens wherever he encountered them and was a true friend many. His passing is a tragic  loss of monumental proportions to his AFC family.  The Alliance For Changes expresses sincere condolences to his family and friends.

Django

Why this educated man refused to take the vaccine?

Education has absolutely nothing to do with vaccines. Now that we see the reason behind his death you can now ask, Why did an educated hospital worker bungle the job?

cain

Now we gonna hear all kinds of conspiracy theories surrounding his sudden death.  I won't be surprised if someone comes out calling this a North Korean style political assassination.

ah shaddup! Always projecting nonsense. That there are no respiratory therapists at the hospital is the real crime here. Covid attacks the respiratory system, and your team of non functional "interlektuals" never thought of trying to get any of those in their hospital from other countries.

55+ years of sheer shit talk, measuring head size, arrogance, and ineptitude.

FM

Now we gonna hear all kinds of conspiracy theories surrounding his sudden death.  I won't be surprised if someone comes out calling this a North Korean style political assassination.

Is this the first time you read of a patient dying in a hospital in Guyana because of error or poor service?

cain

Cain never heard of vaccine passport. He will be stuck in Canada for a very long time.

That bothers me none.

This is the first time hearing the failure of a product being blamed on those not using it. Give that some thought.

cain
@cain posted:

That bothers me none.

This is the first time hearing the failure of a product being blamed on those not using it. Give that some thought.

Brother Cain make sure that you get the vaccine. I don't want you to end up like young Imran Khan.

Ali Khan Azad

Oi Ali, isn't there something, a news article perhaps, out there about a recall of Moderna vaccine in Japan due to "foreign substance". Just what they/we need isn't it?

If I'm correct, Moderna has been in research about ten years but brought out nothing during this time, Covid shows up...Baddam...vaccine tarassss!

cain
@cain posted:

Education has absolutely nothing to do with vaccines. Now that we see the reason behind his death you can now ask, Why did an educated hospital worker bungle the job?

I doan who if dat is true or de new PNC propaganda fuh cover up de fact that dem leaders, even Imran didnt tek de vaccine, send mix message to dem supporters. One of dem inner circle pay de price.

If what yuh say is true...no surprise there. Nuff fake medical schools. And nuff people does go into medicine and law foh social status. Not for a greater social good.

FM
@cain posted:

Oi Ali, isn't there something, a news article perhaps, out there about a recall of Moderna vaccine in Japan due to "foreign substance". Just what they/we need isn't it?

If I'm correct, Moderna has been in research about ten years but brought out nothing during this time, Covid shows up...Baddam...vaccine tarassss!

Weh you get dat from? Youtuble or pon FB?

FM

The man had other health issues, complicated with Covid 19, that"s why he died. He stood a chance if he was vaccinated.

Don,t spread lies just for news, why bother with him, close to 800 have died. The majority of the deaths are un-vaccinated, so think what save lives?

K
@Former Member posted:

Weh you get dat from? Youtuble or pon FB?

I don't use FB crap, try The Wall St Journal, The Guardian.com, CTV News.

Three died so far...ahem...not sure if cause related.

cain
@Former Member posted:

I doan who if dat is true or de new PNC propaganda fuh cover up de fact that dem leaders, even Imran didnt tek de vaccine, send mix message to dem supporters. One of dem inner circle pay de price.

If what yuh say is true...no surprise there. Nuff fake medical schools. And nuff people does go into medicine and law foh social status. Not for a greater social good.

lie man, i'm pro vaccine. took mine (both doses) at the earliest opportunity. i understand the science

i encourage as many people as i can to take it. all my family are vaccinated except my 84 year old mother. try as we might she wouldn't take it

yuh tell another lie pon the apnu-afc leaders deh. them people tek the vaccine. harmon, granger, volda...the whole lot. suh dem is big lies yuh telling deh

understand this. the people not taking the vaccine are not guided by any of the leaders. yuh should try to persuade one of them dead set against the vaccine and see if yuh don't collect two bax for your trouble

the people don't trust the vaccine or government (and not only guyana government)

guyana in a bad state though. we only deh at 23% fully vaccinated

T&T at 35%

Barbados at 36%

Jamaica at 8%

UK at 82%

USA at 56%

Canada at 70%

ah wonder if "pnc propaganda" getting through to the jamaicans

lol

S
@cain posted:

Another case where death was not due to Covid but as usual it will be added to the count.

Three now gone and Moderna's excuse was that stainless steel was found in the water but never mind that, it was all well and good.

cain

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