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Rehman Malik, a senior PPP leader and former senator, died on Wednesday in Islamabad from complications caused by the coronavirus, according to his spokesperson Riaz Ali Turi. He had reached the age of seventy.
“Deeply devastated to say that former interior minister [and] PPP’s senior leader, Abdul Rehman Malik, passed away,”
he tweeted.
Malik was placed on a ventilator earlier this month as his health deteriorated owing to Covid-related issues.
In January, Malik tested positive for the coronavirus. His spokeswoman stated at the time that as his condition deteriorated, the former senator was sent to an intensive care unit of a private hospital in Islamabad. His condition, however, continued to deteriorate, and on February 1, physicians placed him on a ventilator.
The infection had harmed Malik’s lungs, according to the spokeswoman, and the former senator had been complaining of breathing issues since catching Covid.
Waqas Malik, Malik’s nephew, told the media that the former senator’s funeral prayers will be place at 2:30 p.m. tomorrow at the mosque in Islamabad’s H-8 area.
Career in politics
In 1973, Rehman Malik earned a master’s degree in statistics from the University of Karachi, and in 2012, he received an honorary doctorate from the same university.
He has a long political career and served in a variety of capacities, notably as Interior Minister from 2008 to 2013.
He was also awarded the Sitara-i-Shujaat and the Nishan-i-Imtiaz for his work with the Federal Investigation Agency.
Leaders express their sympathies.
On Malik’s death, PPP stalwarts and senior figures from other parties expressed their condolences.
Asif Ali Zardari, the PPP’s co-chairman, paid respect to Malik, calling him a “hardworking and skilled interior minister.”
He went on to say that Malik’s contributions to the country were legendary, and that the PPP’s leadership and workers shared his family’s sadness.
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, the Interior Minister, expressed his sorrow at the death and offered condolences to the deceased’s family.
On the death of the former interior minister, Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar expressed his condolences.
Senator Saleem Mandviwalla of the PPP expressed his “great sadness” at the news and complimented his former colleague as a “wonderful man and amazing politician.”
“Rehman Malik’s death is a great loss for the country’s politics. The vacuum created by Rehman Malik’s demise can never be filled,”
he said, adding that his services for the PPP will always be remembered.
“I am deeply saddened by the demise of former interior minister Rehman Malik. May God forgive him and grant patience to his family,”
senior PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal tweeted.
Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, the Sindh Local Bodies Minister, described Malik as a brilliant leader and sent his sympathies to the deceased’s family.