DLP wants transparency in Government’s handling of COVID-19

The Democratic Labour Party (DLP)  on Saturday called on the Mia Mottley administration for greater transparency in its handling of the current COVID-19 surge.

DLP spokesperson on health, Paul Gibson, said the government should say how many people are in isolation at Harrison Point, which has a maximum capacity of 160, and where others are being held.

The full statement follows:

The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) has been doing the maths regarding the numbers being represented by the government on the number of COVID-19 cases that are on the island. It is our opinion that at this rate additional facilities will have to be opened to accommodate the increasing levels of COVID-19 patients.

The DLP continues to ask for transparency regarding this critical national issue and is asking government to communicate to Barbadians how many people are in the Harrison’s Point facility based on the numbers being advertised and how many persons additionally need to be hosted in facilities other than Harrison’s point?

The statistics show that over a 14-day period we have had over 244 cases confirmed and who should be in isolation. The maximum capacity for persons at Harrison’s point is approximately 160 patients and this has been surpassed.

This indicates to us that our numbers are reaching a range or a zone that is of concern to us as a Party, and of course the wider community.

Yesterday, via a press conference we learned that we have 48 new cases, 45 of which are Barbadians. Thus, we have a question for the members of the Ministry of Health for clarity, when we speak of the clusters, where are they from, are they businesses, churches, homes, and or visitors?

Is it that these persons are going to places where protocols have lapsed? If it is so what has become of the COVID 19 monitoring team, and why haven’t they been policing areas that have lapsed on their protocols?

Is it that the Delta variant is beginning to run rampant in Barbados?

Barbados requires a restoration of stronger education campaigns in our media – television, radio, and social media – speaking to the heightened incidents of Covid-19 and the other variants in the country and instructing persons to continue to wear masks, sanitise, wash hands, and practice physical and social distancing.

We continue to call for transparency on the daily numbers that represent the actual day’s recordings of the Covid-19 cases. We also repeat our call for transparency on the cost of this pandemic to Barbadian taxpayers to date, as a show of accountability.

Where is the money being spent and what are the benefits?