#BTEditorial – Bajans flying too close to the sun

It is becoming increasingly clear that our political and business leaders are losing significant ground in the messaging battle for the hearts and minds of too many people in our population regarding the COVID-19 vaccine.

After reaching the milestone of vaccinating some 100 000 people with at least one dose, it has now become an uphill battle to get the remaining 65 per cent of the population who are more exposed to catching the disease, to go for the jab.

While it is accepted that the AstraZeneca vaccine as well as the other two options now available – the Chinese-made Sinopharm and the American Pfizer – do not represent complete inoculation from COVID-19, the vaccines have proven to reduce the chances of severe illness from the disease, and lessen the chance of spreading it to others.

The fact that Barbados has been relatively successful in containing the spread of the viral illness – through a combination of quality health care management, significant sacrifices by health care and ancillary service providers, and implementation of, and significant adherence to protocols, plus vaccinations – has given some a false sense of security that maybe COVID-19’s danger is overblown.

Those collaborative, planned efforts have, so far, avoided a total breakdown of our health care system and economy. But, from all that has occurred, coupled with the threats posed by the rapidly spreading Delta variant, we may be skirting disaster. We may be flying a little too close to the sun.

The situation is deteriorating in countries all around us. In Jamaica, there has been an admission by the government that the Delta variant was widespread and likely responsible for the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases there.

Dominica, with a population the size of St Michael, has been placed on the United States’ “do not visit” list. The Nature Isle, which was among the first to receive the AstraZeneca vaccines early in 2020, secured enough to cover a significant percentage of its adult population.

Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has told Americans not to visit Dominica because of the “very high risk” of contracting COVID-19 there and becoming very ill.

In the French West Indies, where the anti-vaxxers have taken to the streets to protest restrictions, people seem to want their cake and eat it too. Too many have refused to take COVID-19 vaccines but, at the same time, protest restrictions imposed to limit spread of the disease.

There are unconfirmed reports in Barbados that some local businesses are experiencing delays in accessing foreign exchange from commercial banks to purchase imports.

We cannot, at this stage, make suggestions about why this may be occurring. But it does not take a genius to understand that an open economy like ours which relies so heavily on imports cannot possibly sustain itself for two years without meaningful foreign exchange earning activity.

We cannot live very long on borrowed money, no matter the number of assurances coming from Bay Street that things are under control.

We fully expect that following this round of town hall sessions to discuss the issues surrounding vaccinations, that the Government will have to govern.  Decisions will have to be taken. We are not surprised that Prime Minister Mia Mottley, following her vacation break, will return refreshed and plans to address the nation. The elephant in the room can no longer be ignored.

The private sector knows that unless we get a handle on the evidently rising COVID-19 cases, economic stagnation or worse will occur.

The near-panicked pleas from our healthcare professionals is an indication that they are worried this country is on the brink of what could be a major shock to the health system.

We concur with Antiguan diplomat and trade specialist Sir Ronald Sanders who wrote: “Are some people in Caribbean countries becoming the architects of their own and the region’s destruction? There is clearly an organised anti-vaccination campaign throughout the region.

“Who is behind the campaign is unclear, but what is evident is that opposition political parties and criminal elements in Caribbean societies are taking advantage of the anti-COVID-19 vaccination sentiment for their own narrow purposes.”

It was always going to be a more difficult task convincing the 35 and under age group. And so, based on what was happening globally with this section of the population in most countries, our authorities should have been prepared to execute a much more sophisticated message to reach this group.

We call for the urgent execution of a rapid, targeted response aimed at those who have either been bombarded into vaccine hesitancy, or who have been co-opted by those who have mastered the peddling of disruptive content on social platforms and in the media.