A leading NHS doctor, Dr Alfa Saadu, described as a “living legend” has died in the UK after contracting coronavirus, his family has said.
Saadu, 68, died on Tuesday at about 7.30am after contracting covid-19 two weeks ago.
The former medical director at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, was one of 563 people across the UK to die on Tuesday after testing positive for coronavirus.
The doctor had worked for the NHS for decades and retired in 2017 but carried on working part-time at the Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital in Welwyn, Hertfordshire.
He was not working on the frontline fighting the coronavirus pandemic when he contracted the virus.
The doctor, who grew up in Nigeria’s Kwara state, moved to the UK when he was 12 years old and worked for most of his career in the UK, with a stint of teaching at a hospital in Nigeria.
His son Dani posted on Facebook: “He had been fighting the virus for two weeks but he could not fight any more.
Reacting to the death, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State in a statement said, “We commiserate with the Alanamus of Ilorin and Ahman-Pategi of Patigi over this sad loss.
“The consolation is that Dr Alfa made tremendous contributions to the advancement of humanity through his medical profession.
“As a public health expert, he saved many lives in London as he did across Africa. He will be sorely missed.
“We pray to the Almighty Allah to grant him al-jannah firdaus, keep his family after him, and save our world from this public health enemy number one.
“That said, this death closer home should remind our people that COVID-19 is not a hoax as some persons have claimed. Our best shot is to take all precautions and respect safety protocols recommended by health authorities.”
