KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 27 — The remains of Senator Datuk Guan Dee Koh Hoi who passed away this afternoon will be cremated at the Cheras Crematorium near here, this Saturday.

This was confirmed by his daughter, Melissa Emelda, 38, when contacted by last tonight.

"We understand that the standard operating procedures set for patients who die as a result of Covid-19, do not allow for their bodies to be brought back, therefore, we plan to bring back the ashes of the deceased to Sabah.

"The identification of the body will be done at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital on Saturday (Oct 30) before the process to manage the remains is carried out,” she said.

Melissa said her father was a diligent and hardworking person despite suffering from cancer since 2018, and that the family was fortunate enough to celebrate Guan Dee’s 67th birthday earlier this month.

Guan Dee died at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital at 4.50pm yesterday after complaining of chest pain.

Sabah STAR president Datuk Dr Jeffrey Kitingan was reported to have said that Guan Dee had gone to Kuala Lumpur to attend the Perikatan Nasional (PN) meeting on Sunday (Oct 24) evening failed to attend after testing positive for Covid-19.

Guan Dee was sworn in as a senator on Dec 16, 2020, and made Deputy Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister on April 16 last year before the Cabinet was dissolved after Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin resigned as prime minister on Aug 16. — Bernama