"I had no clue my little sister wouldn't come back"
Mother of five and respected councillor Shabnum Sadiq has died after contracting Coronavirus while on a trip to Pakistan.
Mrs Sadiq, who served on Slough Borough Council, died after suffering “complications” from Coronavirus on April 6, 2020.
The 39-year-old leaves behind her husband and five children, including 13-year-old quadruplets.
Mrs Sadiq’s brother, who lives in the UK, explained that she travelled to Pakistan in the first week of March for a relative’s wedding with her husband Khizwan.
However, just days after being there, Mrs Sadiq fell ill. On March 12, she was admitted to a hospital in Islamabad.
After doctors revealed she had Coronavirus, Mrs Sadiq was on a ventilator for 24 days.
She died after suffering a cardiac arrest. Now her husband is stranded in Pakistan and cannot get a flight back to the UK.
Her brother said his sister was a “very hardworking woman” who was a big fan of boxing.
He told Sky News: “I had no clue my little sister wouldn’t come back from this trip.
“There’s been so much love for her, so many people have been getting in touch and telling us about the amazing work she did as a councillor in her constituency.”
Mrs Sadiq was elected to Wexham Lea Ward in May 2016.
Many paid tribute to the councillor.
Council leader James Swindlehurst said: “This is very shocking for all of us and our thoughts are with her family and friends.
“Shabnum was a dedicated councillor and despite only being in her first term, she had made a contribution far beyond the years she’d spent in the council chamber.
“We worked together closely and personally I will miss her very deeply.
“This is a significant loss for the council and the town, but is nothing compared to the loss her family, close friends and community are feeling right now.
“This has brought home to us that not only is this virus something we have to deal with as a town, but also personally, through our work, through our actions and through our grief for those it has taken.
“Behind every statistic about this virus is a family ripped apart and there is no starker example of that, to us in the council, than to lose one of our colleagues.
“May she rest in peace and her family find comfort in the love she had for them all.”
Foxborough councillor Madhuri Bedi revealed she was feeling “immense heartbreak” for “her, her children, her husband and loved ones”.
She added:
“She was a young woman with huge determination, bringing up her daughter and her quadruplets with ease.”
Labour MP for Slough Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi tweeted:
Shocked and saddened to hear our friend and colleague Councillor @shabnum_sadiq has passed away. She made a huge contribution to local life and had so much to offer our community. My heartfelt condolences to her husband, young children and family. She’ll be greatly missed. RIP
— Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi MP (@TanDhesi) April 6, 2020
Iftakhar Ahmed, chairman of Wexham Court Parish Council, said Mrs Sadiq “was known for her kind and caring personality”.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends, may God give them patience to endure this tragic loss of life,” he said.
The flags at Observatory House and St Martins Place in the town are flying at half-mast as a sign of respect.