Deyalsingh: Good sense can bring faster reopening of TT

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said if people are responsible over the next two weeks, it will be possible to crunch phases two to six of the reopening measures into a shorter time period. He said if people were not willing to follow the public health regulations, this could lead to a reversal.

He said he had been sent photos of people congregating at doubles stands without masks and not physically distancing, and said these failures to follow the rules could slingshot the country back to last week. He said it was the responsibility of the vendors to make sure their customers were following the rules.

He said the ministry was nervous about opening the country, even on a phased basis, as it knew people would be irresponsible. These phases were part of a well-thought-out plan based on the advice of health officials and the mistakes of other countries which tried to open too quickly. He said it was meant to secure the long-term future and health of the 1.4 million people in TT.

He said the ministry expects that any new cases will begin to show up from the weekend. If so, he warned, they will be the result of community spread and cannot be blamed on returning residents or importation.

Deyalsingh said the measures were not meant to punish anyone but to ensure the public health system can manage any new cases which may arise.

There is no history or case study in TT to know what will happen, he pointed out, as covid19 is new.

He said he understood the measures were difficult but he did not want a see-saw of opening things too soon and then having to close down again.

Deyalsingh was disappointed in the narrative being spread that government was only looking after big businesses in allowing restaurants to reopen, as small restaurants and roadside food vendors had also been allowed to reopen. Big restaurants, he said, employ thousands of people, who are now able to come back out to work.

Saying the government can’t flip a switch and open everything at once, he urged those with access to the media to stop looking after their narrow interest and rally around public health officials. He said the solution to their business problems was not a business solution but a public health solution.

Deyalsingh urged the public to continue with the public health measures such as physical distancing, wearing masks when outdoors, sanitisation of surfaces, not touching the face, cough etiquette, and staying home if someone is ill. He said people would have to make these measures part of their daily lives.