The elderly couple that was burnt to death in their East Bank Essequibo home by bandits was on Wednesday laid to rest.
Bibi Jamila Munir and her husband, Mohamed Munir were killed on Sunday last when bandits invaded their Lot 17 Good Hope, East Bank Essequibo home and set it on fire during a botched robbery.
At the funeral on Wednesday, the atmosphere was both sober and sad, as hundreds turned up to pay their last respects to the couple.
Paying tribute to the couple, their granddaughter said the family has suffered a shocking blow and are still trying to come to grips with the death of their loved ones.
Relatives and friends pay their last respects to the couple
She described her grandfather, Mohamed Munir, as the “kindest, most hard-working, most compassionate and gentle person” she has ever known and her grandmother Bibi Jamila Munir, as the “bravest woman in the world.” She added that her grandmother was a driving force in their lives and the lives of everyone in the community.
Munirs’ granddaughter noted that her grandparents loved Guyana, and the family is praying that they get the justice they deserve. She also recited a poem during which she broke down in tears.
The children of Bibi and Mohamed Munir conveyed gratitude to all those who supported them in this time of their grief, noting that the Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG), friends and neighbours played an integral part in assisting the family.
Agriculture Minister Noel Holder who was also present at the funeral expressed condolences on behalf of himself and the Government of Guyana to the family.
People’s Progressive Party’s Member of Parliament and cousin of the late Bibi Munir, Bibi Shadick, in her tribute said the couple would “forever be remembered by everyone as persons who cared for the community and wanted it to be better than it was.”
She added that the fate the Munirs met on Sunday last was one that she cannot accept.
‘’We have to stand up for what is right and we have to demand that there should be security for lives and livelihood. What we work for, we should be allowed to use and we should be allowed to give when we want to give and somebody should not come and snatch it from us. Then when they don’t get it, kill us,” she lamented.
Shaddick said that her cousin was “not just a farmer” but she was also a “social worker, mother, sister, daughter and everything to everyone that needed her.”
Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo who also paid his respect to the couple, conveyed his condolences to the family. He described their departure as being “tragic and horrendous.”
Jagdeo relayed that from what he gathered from persons that knew the couple, it seemed as though the lives of these wonderful people epitomised hard work and commitment to cause. He said that Bibi Jamila Munir was an executive member of the Rice Producers Association (RPA) and knew what struggle was.
He added that “it is a pity that hard work is not recognised in this country, today since people can come in such a callous manner and try to snatch away one’s fruits of hard work, possibly killing them in the process.”
According to Jagdeo, the State should not be held responsible for every criminal act but they should indicate where their sentiments are directed as they should be on the victim’s side and not the perpetrator’s.
”We don’t see them (APNU/AFC) go to places where tragedies occur, right across this country, where people are grieving and they are sorrowful and they have their lives knocked out in callous manners. But we see negotiations in the prison with criminals and we heard about how many people were released from prison… We are still asking until today to see the records of those people who were released from prison and until now there is no attempt on the part of the Government to make those records public.”
According to reports, at around 23:15h on Sunday, several armed bandits invaded the couple’s premises but they managed to secure themselves in one of the bedrooms.
After not being able to gain access to the couple, the angered bandits then doused the house with gasoline and set it alight.
