#BTColumn – We have to support our PM

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by this author are their own and do not represent the official position of the Barbados Today.

by Annette Brathwaite

Please indulge me with a bit of space in Barbados TODAY. I feel compelled to write this in defence of the government which I believe has been receiving unfair criticism from a lot of people in the streets, on the radio, in the paper, and probably elsewhere.

This government has had to deal with an economy which was wrecked by the previous Freundel Stuart government. Mia Mottley’s administration was off to good start before the COVID-19 pandemic hit us and that set back a lot of the plans which she had implemented and which she had to implement.

People blaming government for the way it handling the pandemic, saying it should have closed our borders to tourists last year. That is a matter of opinion after the fact and I will not agree or disagree with any of that.

But what I find really amusing is that we act as though Barbadians weren’t travelling into this country in November and December. If the British variant of the virus got into Barbados, why do we believe that it was brought here by the British? Nationals of this country were coming into the island from England, Canada and America, should our borders have been closed to them too? It is a stupid argument that I am hearing from people who are just anti-BLP.

Can you imagine if the DLP was still in government? I believe someone from his cabinet would have had to wake up Mr Stuart and tell him that there is a pandemic going on. Are we quite sure if he knows even now that there is a pandemic? No one might have roused the sleeping giant.

This situation has been taxing on all of us and Prime Minister Mottley is trying her best. Rather than look at what she hasn’t done, all citizens should be seeking to find out what can be done now to support the government in these trying times.

Miss Mottley has always shown her love for people, I have never met her personally but I am sure this situation is grieving her deeply to see so many people dying from this virus.

But we need to support her and if she makes a mistake here and there, forgive her, and let’s get on with the business of advancing this island.

And we need to follow the safety protocols. When people are disobedient or careless and get infected, can we blame Miss Mottley for that? The level of communication with the people is at an all-time high, especially with these press conferences that Liz Thompson is managing so wonderfully well.

But you know, people still finding fault with the press conferences, with Thompson, with every Tom, Dick and Harry, although there was a time before 2018 that government never used to talk to Bajans other than when Chris Sinckler was informing us that they raising some tax or introducing a new one.

God bless Miss Mottley and her team.