Niël Terblanché
THE community of Walvis Bay will once again gather at a cemetery in town but this time it would be at the graveside of Chandler Plato, a well known resident and servant of the harbour town when he will be laid to rest at the Narraville cemetery on Saturday morning.
The 49-year-old Plato who served the community in many capacities passed away earlier this week while admitted to hospital critical condition. His death was recorded as COVID-19 related.
Ironically the late Plato also served on the Walvis Bay Disaster Risk Management Committee that fought relentlessly for the establishment of temporary hospitalisation facilities for COVID-19 patients that would need more intensive treatment.
Besides the community of Narraville commiserating with the wife and sons of the late Plato, messages of condolence poured in from all over Namibia.
His colleagues at the Walvis Bay Municipality where he worked for more than 20 years laid wreaths in front of his home in Narraville.
The Namibia Rugby Union also held a special ceremony to celebrate the life of the man who not only played rugby but also managed the sport on national and regional levels.
Besides playing for the Kudus Rugby Club in his younger day he also served as the club’s secretary and eventually the chairperson for several years. He was elected as the West’s representative on the Namibian Rugby Union Board in 2018 and served in this position until his death.
His brother, Algenon Plato, said that the late Plato will be laid to rest in the Narraville Cemetery on Saturday morning.
“It will be a small ceremony because of the State of Emergency regulations but the community has planned some special tribute for my brother that would not contravene the rules,” he said.
Plato’s death came at a time where the Narraville community achieved victory in their protest against the undignified burial of people who died as a result of COVID-19 that would have been buried in a new cemetery in the Namib Desert.
The Walvis Bay Town Council during an extraordinary meeting earlier this week, decided that people whose deaths are COVID-19 related will be allowed to be buried in existing cemeteries.
