Gopeesingh: Deyalsingh, covid19 management team should resign

Former UNC MP Dr Tim Gopeesingh called on Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh and the covid19 management medical team to resign over what he said was the incompetent handling of the covid19 pandemic.

He was speaking during the Opposition’s media briefing on Sunday.

Gopeesingh condemned Deyalsingh for a statement he made on Tuesday after a tour of the Southern Academy for the Performing Arts (SAPA) mass vaccination site.

After noting that Trinidad and Tobago was, at the time, about to cross 1,000 covid19 deaths, Deyalsingh said, “What we knew at the time is what we did at the time. There is nothing that we have said that we could have done better or done differently.”

Gopeesingh called the statement cold and remorseless.

“(It is) unquestionable (that) this statement by Minister Deyalsingh is abominable, callous, insensitive, and totally unacceptable,” he said.

Deyalsingh also said he hoped the silver lining of the pandemic is that people take better care of their health and protect themselves against non-communicable diseases.

But Gopeesingh accused Deyalsingh of blaming people who are diabetic.

“Is it because you have uncontrolled diabetes you must die and something good will come out of this? These people had normal lives. If you have covid19 (the ministry) is supposed to take care of them.

“Imagine the Minister of Health saying something good has come out of 1,000 patients dying of covid19. This is a disgraceful and heartless statement, and he should be fired on this statement alone. He should have resigned himself.

“Imagine the immeasurable grief and suffering of those 1,000 families. Where is the humanity and compassion for the grieving families, some of whose generations have been wiped out, as we saw recently on the news?”

Gopeesingh said Deyalsingh and the team have failed to do their jobs effectively and have not addressed issues surrounding the number of deaths in the intensive care units (ICUs) and the high dependency units (HDUs).

“How many died in the ICUs and HDUs? We have been asking for months for information relating to that from the ministry (and) the Prime Minister.

“Can they account for the deaths of the covid19-positive patients? No information has been forthcoming.”

He said people have been asking him if their family members go into the ICU or HDU, what are their chances of survival.

“Do the research and put it to the population,” he said.