Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has expressed condolences to followers of Sri Sathya Sai Baba.
She said she hoped his legacy of goodwill would endure. Sai Baba died yesterday from cardio respiratory failure after ailing for sometime. A statement from the Office of the Prime Minister said Sai Baba's teachings were of unity, peace, devotion and faith. "Hearing of his loss brings sadness to our hearts but we remain hopeful that his valuable legacy of goodwill will endure in his followers and inspire all persons globally to do similar acts of charity," the statement said. Sai Baba was born Sathyanarayana Raju in the village of Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh in India. The Indian guru established centres in 114 countries including T&T. There are approximately 45 Sai centres in T&T.
The Sathya Sai Baba Organisation of T&T is responsible for establishing youth programmes and played an instrumental role in the teaching of human studies. Persad-Bissessar said: "On behalf of the Government and people of Trinidad and Tobago, I wish to express my deepest condolences to the followers of Sri Sathya Sai Baba. "We pray for his thousands of devotees locally and millions of followers world-wide and for the Government and people of India. "We pray that the good Lord bless them all with comfort and strength during this time of grief as we collectively mourn the passing of this great Guru." The statement added Persad-Bissessar had instructed Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Suruj Rambachan to send official condolences to the Government of India.