Veteran journalist Raschid Osman, 78, died in his sleep yesterday morning. Mr Osman was a former Editor-in-Chief at the Guyana Chronicle and up to Friday served as Assistant Editor with the Sunday edition.Friday evening, he opted to cover the opening of the National Drama Festival, which he did. Mr Osman has covered the arts during his several decades in the profession.
He was also fondly loved on radio for his Mid-Morning Classics, which he began presenting in 1975. After a brief pause this year, he chose to return to the air due to the calling of fans of the programme.
He had once said Mid-Morning Classics was a part of his life. And there were so many who claimed that it was those On-Air programmes that introduced them to classical music.
Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, a journalist for many years, in a statement described Mr Osman as a “towering figure in Guyanese media and in the arts”.
Mr Nagamootoo said the loss of Mr Osman is an enormous blow to these fraternities and to the Guyanese society.
“Unfailingly committed to his work and to the arts, Osman leaves a rich legacy for young journalists to emulate. His arts reviews were par excellence as was his work in radio. On behalf of the Cabinet and the Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana I express deepest condolences to his wife Yvonne, daughter Ruth and all his relatives and friends,” the Prime Minister said.
Editor-in-Chief of the Guyana Chronicle Nigel Williams also paid tribute to late journalist and editor.
“Mr Osman was a wonderful human-being whose experience and work in both print and broadcast media made him one of the foremost journalists of his era,” Mr Williams said.
Mr Osman for many years worked as editor and feature writer at the Guyana Chronicle.
He would be sorely missed, Mr Williams said.
“The staff will miss his guidance and the calmness with which he dealt with difficult situations. On behalf of the entire Editorial Department, I express deepest condolences to his sorrowing relatives, especially his wife Yvonne and only child, Ruth Osman.”
Former Information Minister in the People’s National Congress (PNC) Government, Yvonne Harewood-Benn said the death was a tremendous loss because Raschid had a lot to share with the younger media operatives.

Thorough professional
“He was a very thorough professional, dedicated to his task,” she added.
Veteran journalist Hubert Williams, who was in some part of the world and flying into Barbados on a two-day assignment, was shocked to learn of the death but found the time to applaud Osman’s contribution to journalism and the arts.
He posited: “Raschid was a short and quiet gentle giant in the Editorial Department, who spoke little, but wrote volumes on music and the arts. His death brings an end to one of the great survivors in Guyanese newspaper and radio journalism.”
Godfrey Wray, a former Sports Editor and Sunday Editor and now Editorial Consultant with the Chronicle was rendered speechless when he got the news. He could only mutter: “But we were together in the Editorial Department up to late yesterday. The void he leaves will be hard to fill.”
Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Jean La Rose said the news was a major shock because Raschid played a very important role in all-round media. “It is a great loss,” she lamented.
Claudette Earle, top journalist and colleague for many years was stunned by the news. She said: “As a weaver of the written word Raschid Osman stood tall among his contemporaries. Whether he was analysing the interpretation of a Tennessee Williams character by a Theatre Guild actress or whether he was listing layers of symbolism in a Ron Savory painting, Raschid’s use of language was both effective and magical.
“In this digital age where language is increasingly codified and stripped of nuances his mastery of prose was elegant and incisive.”
General Manager of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited Michael Gordon expressed deepest sorrow to Osman’s family. He said the loss would be a dent in the quality of broadcasting and the written word. “Those are big shoes to be filled,” he said
Mr Osman leaves to mourn his wife, Yvonne, his daughter Ruth, and many other relatives and friends, including the staff of the Guyana Chronicle.