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New Delhi: An Indian staffer who worked for the New Zealand High Commission in the capital passed away in a Delhi hospital due to complications from Covid-19, this was the same person for whom the commission had sought oxygen for which created a political stir.
One of the longest working staffer, he joined the commission in 1986 when Sir Edmund Hillary in was the New Zealand’s High Commissioner to India.
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In a statement issued by the New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta, expressed how saddened they are by the staffer’s demise. Mahuta said, “I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of a long-serving New Zealand High Commission employee in New Delhi, and my thoughts and aroha are with the family at this time. Any loss of life is extremely sad and I know that the MFAT will be grieving at this time.” She added, “New Zealand truly values the support he gave to our country.”
According to a TOI report, Mahuta confirmed the the oxygen SOS put out on Twitter earlier in May was for the same person. “While they used the wrong channels they did as much as they could to ensure that his care could be provided for. They did as much as they can to care for him,” Mahuta was quoted as saying in a statement. She added the New Zealand foreign ministry will need time to process what had happened under “extenuating circumstances” of the global pandemic.
Due to the political stir the High Commission tweeted an apology.
We are trying all sources to arrange for oxygen cylinders urgently and our appeal has unfortunately been misinterpreted, for which we are sorry.
— NZ in India (@NZinIndia) May 2, 2021
Mahuta said another six High Commission staffers had contracted the virus though none of them were symptomatic and three had tested negative now.
At the time of peak of the second wave, the SOS tweet came from New Zealand’s embassy and allegedly from the Philippines embassy. According to reports, Congress members reached the locations with oxygen supplies. This led External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to lash out that the oxygen was “unsolicited” and the Congress’ announcement an attempt at “fake publicity”.
Later, Jaishankar tweeted that MEA had checked with the Philippines embassy that the supply was “unsolicited” as they had “no Covid cases”.
“Clearly for cheap publicity by you know who. Giving away cylinders like this when there are people in desperate need of oxygen is simply appalling,” he tweeted.
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