Palu mayor passes away

PALU, Central Sulawesi: The mayor of Palu, H. Baso Lamakarate, 64, passed away on Wednesday at 9 a.m. local time at Undata general hospital, Palu municipality.

Red-and-white flags were flown at half-mast by city residents to mourn the death of the much-respected mayor. Before he died, he was in intensive care for one night at a local hospital.

According to his nephew, Iwan Lapaesre, the sudden demise of his uncle was a shock to the family, as he seemed to be in good health during the election on Monday. He went to the polling station to vote.

Iwan said that his uncle had a number of medical complaints such as hepatitis and diabetes. "We really felt the loss of Uncle Baso," he said sadly.

The news of his death came as quite a shock to Palu residents, even though they already knew about his ailment since he became mayor.

Reports surfaced earlier this year that the mayor had passed away, but they were later found to be untrue.

As of late afternoon, high-ranking officials from the Central Sulawesi government, the provincial police and regental administration were still paying their respects to the family of the deceased. After being laid out at his official residence on Jl. Garuda, the deceased was later taken to the family graveyard in Biromaru, Sigi Biromaru district. -- JP