Saying that the PPP/C government’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic is costing lives, the opposition coalition APNU+AFC is maintaining that its rigid measures and enforcement kept the number of cases and deaths low while it was in government.
This was stated by opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Tabitha Sarabo-Halley during a virtual press conference on Wednesday as she stressed that the idea that not enough testing was done while APNU+AFC was in government is false.
Sarabo-Halley told the virtual conference that the former administration took a different approach as it focused on having symptomatic persons tested and treated as quickly as possible and ensuring that asymptomatic persons observed all the relevant measures so as to not spread the virus. “What we were focusing on were persons who showed symptoms and ensured that they got the treatment that was required,” Sarabo-Halley said.
“What we see happening here is where you’re testing the entire population. There’s nothing wrong with that but if you don’t have the capacity to test in a very quick manner then you end up with persons dying because you can’t treat them fast enough because there is a line of testing for people to go through,” she explained.
The MP even told the conference of the situation where one woman who had a heart condition was not able to receive treatment as she was forced to wait for her COVID-19 results and before the results came back, she had passed.
“The approach has to be one which ensures that those who have the symptoms and are showing that their bodies are reacting negatively to it get the treatment as early as possible so that we don’t have loss of life,” she stressed.
Additionally, MP Geeta Chandan-Edmond, who also spoke during the press conference, also claimed that prior to August 2nd, the number of deaths and cases were significantly lower as stringent measures were in place and those measures were enforced. Now, she said, it appears to be business as usual.
“Now, if you go about Georgetown or anywhere in the country, you see it’s business as normal but whereas when we were in government the curfew measures were implemented,” Chandan-Edmond said.
Meanwhile, when asked why the phased reopening went ahead in June, when there was a significant spike in cases, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Karen Cummings stated that there had to be a balance as there was a significant economic impact on the country due to the global pandemic. She stated that they had hoped that good sense would prevail and persons would have adhered to the measures that were put in place as part of the different phases of the reopening process.
Dr. Cummings told the conference that while she was at the Foreign Affairs Ministry, a number of persons wanted to come home to Guyana and that played a role in reopening the borders in phases. “So people wanted to come home and so you had to, in a phased approach, you know, open the border. So, it was a kind of balance and you had to make some split second decisions,” she said.
At that time when the phased reopening went ahead she said that the spike in cases was not as alarming as it is now and at that time the government continued with tracing, monitoring and testing as it had assistance from countries in the Caribbean, China and Colombia.
Former Secretary of the National COVID-19 Task Force, Imran Khan added that when the reopening continued, it was adjusted to the situation at the time.
“As we got to the end of one phase, assessments were done, presentations were made to the National Task Force, presentations were made on a weekly basis to the Cabinet then and based on the overall situation the Health Emergency Operation Centre made recommendations as to how each phased reopening should be adjusted and modified to suit what was happening on the ground,” Khan said.
