Much loved Durban activist, Omi Nair succumbs to Covid-19 after 41 days in hospital

Durban – Tributes are pouring in from across the city on Monday after news spread that Omi Nair, a much-loved community activist lost her battle with Covid-19.

She was 63-years-old.

Her daughter, Derisha Newtown, on a Facebook post early on Monday morning wrote, “My beautiful mum, has passed. RiP my beautiful mummy. We love you today, tomorrow and forever”.

Speaking to IOL, Newton said that her mother had been admitted to Ahmed Al-Kadi Private Hospital in Mayville.

She died in the early hours of Monday morning, 41 days after being admitted.

She said that her mother loved her community and lived her life serving others.

“She was the person kind and supportive to all she met. She was a people’s people. She loved her community of Chatsworth and she loved her neighbourhood of Unit 11. She honestly just gave her best 100% and her motto in life was onward and upward,” Newtown said.

Among her many accolades in life during which she fought for equality in education, Nair was named Woman Of The Year three times, in 2016, 2018 and 2019.

When South Africa went into as hard lockdown last year, Nair’s activism was on full display as she rallied her online community to donate food parcels for the destitute.

Writing on her personal blog, Nair said she was bookkeeper in the corporate world for 14 years and took care of the books of three engineering and seven property companies.

She resigned and to be a stay at home mother to her then two small children.

“This was the start of my activism when I was elected onto the Crossmead Primary Education Committee,” she wrote.

“This did not go down well with the “old boys club” as how dare I according to them, enter the men’s domain as according to them, my place was in the kitchen! Their mannerisms and behaviour later changed as they saw the value I brought to the school community and the community at large…

“On the 30th August 2020 we celebrated our 40th Wedding anniversary (Ruby anniversary) and I am eternally grateful for the support I have received from my husband and children Derisha and Lushen for the past 34 years in my community activism. I work solo and completely voluntarily and my husband has supplied me with all the means to do what I do. Believe me, carrots have been dangled for the past 25 years for me to join political parties and my generic answer is oil and water does not mix. I am a very principled person, I stand for justice and righteousness. I will work with anyone political or otherwise if we share the same vision and ethos where ultimately, my community can benefit and will be uplifted. I believe that there is no right way to do the wrong thing,” Nair wrote.

While she was mostly known for community activism, Nair was a passionate cook and ran the popular, Omi’s healthy eating the LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) way Facebook page that has over 30 000 members.

IOL