Vendors not told they have to dump produce

THE EDITOR: I have taken note of the article written by Elizabeth Gonzales of the Newsday dated April 7. This article contains several inaccuracies and erroneous statements being attributed to myself as the mayor of Chaguanas.

Firstly, the article indicated that calls to my phone went unanswered, when in fact I had an interview via telephone with the Newsday and gave full comments on the issues surrounding the Chaguanas market.

Secondly, at no time did the CBC (Chaguanas Borough Corporation) indicate to the vendors that they would have to dump any of their produce or any of their stocks they would have left in the market.

The closure of the market was due to the fact that a vendor tested positive for covid19. This was only conveyed to me by the CEO of the CBC on Saturday night. The CMOH (County Medical Officer of Health) advised that the market be closed for sanitisation and for contact tracing to be done. This was done so that vendors and consumers can in fact use the market in a safe environment. We have ensured that the market was properly sanitised and reopened in a speedy manner.

I have also taken note of the spike of covid19 cases throughout the country and we are doing all that we can to protect the lives of our citizens through guidance from the medical experts. In this time of a pandemic effective communication is essential and sensitive matters such as these should be done with accuracy and integrity.

FAAIQ MOHAMMED

mayor of Chaguanas