Senior Reporter
derek.achong@guardian.co.tt
After narrowly escaping an assassination attempt at his home in late September, attorney Taradath Singh was convinced that his attacker would return to finish the job.
Singh spent the last weeks of his life reconnecting with relatives, renewing his faith in God and preparing a final message to his grieving family, friends, colleagues and clients.
Singh was shot dead by a gunman outside a gym in Charlieville, Chaguanas, last Tuesday.
A statement recorded by Singh in anticipation of his eventual death was played during his funeral at his Penn Trace, Cunupia home yesterday morning.
In the brief statement, an emotional Singh called on those mourning his death to not dwell on it and eventually move on with their lives.
“Don’t live in this moment. All things will pass. All things, good or bad, joy and sorrow, will pass. Don’t let this moment determine your next day or your next days,” Singh said.
“Stay strong, live, love, and work hard,” he added.
Singh’s heartfelt plea was not easily accepted by the scores who gathered for his funeral.
One man openly wept, wailed and remonstrated Singh for not taking the threat on his life seriously, as he was allowed to place a flower in his coffin.
“I come to you and I tell you they was coming brother. You break my heart boy. A big man like me. Look how you have me. My heart is broken,” he screamed while being consoled by his companion.
“It have no better lawyer than you. It have nobody with a genuine heart like you boy,” he added, before being led outside.
Singh’s brother Percival, who officiated the ceremony, said his brother was at peace before his death and accepted that it was inevitable following a failed attempt on his life on September 27.
However, he noted that Singh did not want revenge against those who were targeting him. He claimed that Singh even expressed hope that they would repent for their actions and seek forgiveness for their sins from God, as he was able to in the weeks before his death.
“Let we live with forgiveness and let we let it all go. That was his desire,” Percival said.
He claimed that his brother’s main regret was not being able to take more time away from his hectic schedule to spend time with his family and friends.
He also advised the mourners not to speculate too much over the reason for his brother’s death.
“Some people hate you because you are doing better than them. Some hate you because they want what you have. Some people just don’t like the way you do things,” he said.
Singh’s daughter Rebecca, who delivered the eulogy, focused on her father’s strong work ethic and his desire to give the best representation possible to his clients.
She recounted the numerous nights that she went to bed, leaving her father looking over documents while preparing for trials. She said he always encouraged her to work hard to achieve her dreams.
“He would essentially tell me you will not get it once, you will not get it twice, but you have to keep trying through hard work. He was the personification of the phrase the grind never stops,” she said.
She said he also always considered his clients’ welfare and often boasted that he would answer their calls at times of day and night that other attorneys would not.
“I knew he worked hard for them,” she said.
Singh’s funeral was attended by numerous police officers, some of whom worked with him while he was a member of the T&T Police Service (TTPS) before being called to the bar, and others who interacted with him as a lawyer.
Two members of the TTPS Band played a trumpet and a drum while Singh’s casket was being carried to a hearse.
Singh was later cremated at Waterloo Cremation Site.
There have been no arrests yet in relation to his murder.
