The Editor
Bahamas Press 21 st October 2020
Dear BP.
True to the shambolic nature of this government now even its doctors disagree on the efficacy of its on again off again lockdowns. From the very start, the FNM has fumbled the ball when it came to fighting the Coronavirus and keeping Bahamians safe. They have failed at every level; no free universal testing for our citizens; little to no tracing of possibly infected persons although tracing isolation and quarantine is the only proven weapon in controlling the virus; family island businesses decimated
by lockdowns even those which at the time had no reported cases; an ill-advised opening of the borders against all advice; a Covid-19 dashboard that even its experts can’t explain.
Speaking of which, we now know that the Ministry of Health has lost contact with over 300 persons who have either tested positive or had contact with infected persons. This is medical negligence; how can any competent testing laboratory test a person and not get full, verified details from them? There is a very easy way to find these persons and any properly trained contact tracer should know this method.
But since this incompetent government especially the Prime Minister does not like advice why waste time on this. The reality is that these possibly infectious persons are loose in the community and since the infection rate grows exponentially and infected persons can at a minimum infect 2-4 other persons these lost persons will have a significant, negative impact on our Covid-19 fight.
I admit that I am beginning to despair for my country. The mind-blowing
incompetence of the Competent Authority and his minions is causing so much pain and anxiety in the Bahamas that we have literally tuned them out. Although the government insists that it is open to suggestions, they have shown that this assertion is yet another lie.
If the Minister of Health believes that he can press into service as contact tracers public officers who otherwise would be furloughed, he is in for a big shock.
Smart Bahamians will always choose life rather than deal with a dangerous, archaic Covid-19 tracing program which has been ineffective. Specifically, anecdotal information suggests that the tracers still trace as if they were tracking STD’s and not a virus so, there is unnecessary proximity to their cases. So, who will train the new tracers; I can go on and on about this but why be a pedant?
At some inquiry in the future, we may find out how was it that persons trained in the sciences ignored all of the scientific data and make such a cock up of what started as a manageable
problem?
We may also find out why entire government offices are emptied when a Covid case is confirmed for “deep cleaning” when its other occupants are rarely tested. Of course, we must find out how it is that persons confirmed positive for the Corona virus were never contacted and their contacts traced. This governments mismanagement of this and other matters has all of the hallmarks of a disaster one which could have been mitigated.
But as usual we can expect only deflection and lies from this government. As an example, rather than deal with the Covid emergency they tabled Auditor General’s report some of which are more than 3 years old as a deflection. In any event, if the Covid -19 Ambassadors are not too busy perhaps they can take some of their vehicles through Balfour Avenue. There they will see hundreds of Bahamians without masks in the streets; playing dominoes; selling fruit and vegetables; buying lottery tickets; lazing about and generally sharing their droplets with others.
As far as the PM’s presentation to the House today is concerned I suggest that the FNM comes up with fresh ideas; stop parroting portions of the Barbados Economic Recovery Plan; and stop presenting PLP initiatives such as the Sovereign Wealth Fund plan as their own.
The Prime Minister should also recognize the interdependency of solving the Covid-19 and any plans he may have. He has put these grandiose plans in jeopardy because of his inept, incompetent management of our Bahamas.
Sincerely,
Michael J. Brown
