IMRAN Khan, the Director of Communications within the Office of the Opposition Leader, has lost his battle with the novel coronavirus.

Reports are that an unvaccinated Khan went into severe respiratory failure a week after being admitted to the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown. He died during the wee hours of Tuesday.

Khan, a senior member of the Alliance for Change, was also the former Director of the Department of Public Information, under the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Coalition government.

Prior to that, he served as the head of communications for the West Indies Cricket Board, which has since extended condolences on Khan’s passing.
On September 25 at 00:27 hrs, just three days before he died, Khan posted to his Facebook page saying that “By the grace and strength of God, I am still fighting this.”

At 15:10 hrs the following day, he made a separate post thanking persons for their outpour of love, prayers, and messages of encouragement and support.

“I am overwhelmed beyond explanation and I am in excellent spirits,” Khan said in his social media post, adding: “Please be assured that I am fighting and there is no giving up.”

In commenting on Khan’s passing, former Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo was quoted by Big Smith News as saying that he was surprised that someone of Khan’s stature was unvaccinated against the deadly coronavirus that has killed millions globally and more than 700 locally.
Also testing positive for the virus was Khan’s wife, Attorney-at-Law Tamara Khan, who has since been discharged and is currently receiving home care.

As it is, 99 per cent of all COVID-19-related deaths have been recorded as unvaccinated persons. The Ministry of Health has said that it is continuing its national coronavirus novel vaccination programme, and called on all eligible Guyanese to take the lifesaving jabs.