Former Home Affairs Minister in the PPP Government Feroze Mohamed has died, the party’s Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali confirmed Friday evening.
He was 74. Ali said Mr Mohamed was ill for some time and was admitted to hospital recently. Mr Mohamed was from Berbice but lived in Georgetown.
“He was an outstanding Guyanese who has contributed significantly to Guyana’s political, social and economic development,” said Ali.
Ali said Mr Mohamed played an important role in the early struggles that eventually saw the return of democracy to Guyana in 1992 with the October 5 general elections.
After those elections, Mr Mohamed was named Minister of Home Affairs under the Presidency of Dr Cheddi Jagan. He later served as advisor to other PPP Presidents, including Janet Jagan, Samuel Hinds and Bharrat Jagdeo.
Ali said Mr Mohamed was a “a major plank in PPP and played an integral role in grooming and molding many of the leaders of the PPP.”
“He had a keen interest in education upliftment of all Guyanese in ensuring social services were affordable, adequate and accessible,” Ali stated.
Ali said Mr Mohamed’s death marks a “great loss to the PPP and Guyana and he would always be remembered as a true patriot and a champion for the working class.”
In addition, Ali noted that as the PP’s Chief Whip in the National Assembly, Mr Mohamed was among the sharpest in understanding Parliamentary procedures and practices.
It was Mr Mohamed who delivered the eulogy at the funeral of Dr Cheddi Jagan on March 10, 1997.
At that time, he reflected on the time the two spent together.
“We shared many anxious moments and faced many trials; we were involved with other colleagues in numerous campaigns around one or another issue; we discussed collectively and, at times, seemingly interminably, various subjects to hammer our clear and correct positions.
“Whether we were engaged in practical political work or theoretical activities, or elaborating political tactics and strategy, what stood out in Comrade Cheddi were his unswerving commitment to principles, his foremost loyalty to the cause of the working people, his burning desire to bring about social and economic justice, his tremendous optimism even on occasions when the situation would appear grim.”
