In the past week the nation said farewell to a great son and statesman. The common view of people at all levels of society and of diverse religious backgrounds is that in former president Noor Hassanali we had met a true citizen of Trinidad and Tobago, and an honourable man.

The honour that so many feel called to pay to him must, in part, be due to the respect that he himself showed to all regardless of their position in society.

Mr Hassanali a devout Muslim, with his wife Zalayhar, was able to point to something beyond himself and the world around him. In his generosity, humility and gentleness he gave evidence, quite simply, of the presence of a God whom we all serve.

What truly honours God, “pure unspoilt religion,” says one of the readings in this Sunday’s liturgy is “to keep oneself unstained by the world” and “to care for orphans and widows” in their affliction (James 1:27).

It is the duty of each generation to recognise the “orphans and widows” in their midst and to do what they must to assist them. The Hassanalis through their generosity to those in need indicated that they knew well those who belonged to that group in present-day Trinidad and Tobago.

Many have learnt to their surprise that the former president and his wife were patrons of this or that organisation, or that they have been assisting generously one person here or a group there.

Being a good citizen

Mr Hassanali was president at a particularly difficult time in the nation’s history. Although he was not in the country when the 1990 coup was attempted, it took place during his tenure of office and required—in the aftermath—a head of state who would do all that was necessary to preserve our democratic way of life and bring a sense of calm and composure to the office and to the country. He and the first lady demonstrated they had the right qualities for that moment in our history.

The integrity and evenhandedness of Mr Hassanali in public life is evident in his election to the office of President, for two terms by successive governments. He was clearly respected by politicians on both sides of the bench.

Fundamentally though, the former president reminded us of what being a good citizen is all about, of what each of us should be and could be. In this way he was extraordinary in the ways in which he did what should be quite ordinary.

It is sadly the case that we fail too often to value the true worth of persons while they are with us. Some of that is unavoidable; it is by looking back that we see the road travelled, that we see the past in true relation to the present.

As the nation recalls the life of Noor Hassanali, it is important that we find various ways of preserving his legacy for succeeding generations and for the building up of the nation of Trinidad and Tobago.

His life beckons us to rise above unacceptable standards of behaviour that might have become commonplace or acceptable, to live according to the principles that honour God and draw us into the service of all our brothers and sisters. May his life always remind us of what this nation and its citizens can be.