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Dear Editor,
I have mad love for politics. Even though this agape love for politics is eternal, I have long concluded that a career in politics is not for me, since I’m likely to be a colossal failure. Why? I am too forthright. I am too direct. I am too blunt. But most importantly, my allegiance would never be to a party leader. To senior party functionaries. Absolutely never to politicians. My allegiance will be forever and irreversibly bonded to the poor. It is for this reason that I will be a loner in any political party. A maverick. Someone who rocks the boat and will ultimately sinks.
Today Guyana has passed another milestone. A milestone that the fraudulent Government would rather be kept on the down low. A milestone of a century of COVID deaths. And the fraudulent Government didn’t just achieve it. They achieved it in record time. If we are to compare this infamous achievement to the well loved T20 cricket, it will translate to a century in two overs. With COVID being the batsmen and the illegitimate Government being the bowlers, it would suggest an incompetent bowling line-up that was delivering wides, no balls and rank lollipops. And that sums up this misfit unit who are over their heads in managing this pandemic. The sad reality is that the opening bowler, the masquerading Minister of Death, is nothing short of a farcical yet provocative fool. Clearly struggling with his line and length, he was sent three blind mice to guide him on where to deliver his balls. And the oversight of the quartet of queers are a collection of clinical clowns in Freedom House. A depressing and deadly unit they are.
So why do I speak so disparagingly of this clown unit. To shed some light on this let’s first re-examine some basic concepts. The pattern of COVID transmission and cases/death can be plotted on a graph. The graph so produced will be exponential in nature. From this graph, three distinct phases are identifiable. These are an exponential phase, a flattening phase and a phase of decline.
The exponential phase represents transmission of the infection which is characterised by rapid increase in numbers of cases and deaths. The flattening phase simply means that there is some degree of control over the transmission of the deaths. In effect, transmissions and deaths have plateau. The decline phase is self-explanatory and simply mean that both deaths and cases are decreasing.
When managing COVID the aim is to get out of the exponential phase. The reason is obvious. No caring Government would want to see their people falling ill and dying from COVID, at a rapid rate. For any caring Government, this would be a COVID emergency. How can we flatten the COVID curve? Rule number 1. Do not import new cases. That would make it impossible to flatten the curve and will result in more cases and deaths. Steps that should be taken are;
Lockdown: The virus needs human bodies to live. If we are locked away in our houses and the infected are isolated or hospitalised then the virus cannot be transmitted. Face mask: This blocks off our mouths and nose. In effect, shutting the doors on the virus.
Social distancing. The infected person would struggle to project their virus beyond 6ft. Stay 6ft away from them and we should be safe. Avoid crowds: Any form of crowds should be avoided. In crowd we cannot social distance. In crowds we increase our chances of having a head on collision with the virus. Sadly, only the virus will win in that situation. Hand sanitising and washing: The virus can sit in our palms just awaiting a handshake for transmission. Wash them off your hands and avoid hand shake.
Guyana presently has 102 deaths and nearly 3,500 cases. Over the last two months, there were 40 deaths per month. In the first five months of COVID under APNU+AFC, there were 4 deaths per month. Over the last two months there were 1500 cases per month. Under the APNU+AFC government there were 80 cases per month. You don’t need to have the brain of Einstein to recognise that this is a rapid increase in cases and deaths over the past two months. This could only mean one thing. We are the exponential phase of COVID. A national emergency that requires emergency actions.
What is the illegitimate government doing? Opening the airports. Yes I will repeat. Opening all ports. Import COVID. Import death. Are you speechless? I am. It is this type of foolery that have us in this present crisis. Don’t we have enough COVID on our plates? Why import more at a time when you are struggling to manage the numbers you presently have? Answer. It is about money. The powerful oligarchs need to make more billions. They careless who gets infected. It wouldn’t be them since they will be hidden away in their mansions, from us plebs.
But there is a bigger problem. A massive problem. Schools have been closed since March. Over seven months. With Guyana being on the exponential increase phase of COVID, schools will not reopen anytime soon. With the airports reopen and COVID being imported, that will make it longer for schools to reopen. Probably a year. Likely more.
But guess what? Schools reopening is not this illegitimate government priority. Schools reopening will not bring them billions. So what are our kids doing? Not much. Miseducated Priya Manickchand, who is masquerading as Minister of Education boasts of online classes. Google classroom. Over 60% of Guyana is without internet access, how are these kids going to access these classes without internet access? PPP is not bothered about that. Their kids are well taken care of, others will have to swim or drown. Likely drown. Seven months without school can do irreversible damage to a child’s prospects. A year or more is terminal. My heart aches for the forgotten poor.
So what this government should have been doing?
Step 1: Flatten the COVID curve. I’ve described above how this can be done.
Step 2: Reopen schools: These kids have lost enough schooling. School reopening would be the priority of any caring Government. Ensure strict face mask wearing and social distancing.
Step3: If the curve remains flattening or is on the decline phase then a phase reopening of the country may be undertaken. When the airports are reopened, be very strict on who is allowed in. Passengers coming from countries where COVID numbers are high should not be permitted entry or if allowed in must be quarantine for 2 weeks. Non-negotiable.
What are my predictions? Not good. Catastrophe. Just think of a couple with ten kids. They are living in severe poverty. Struggling to have one meal a day. And then this. They are planning on having more kids. Exactly my point. PPP are struggling to manage the COVID pandemic. Rather than managing what they have, they are reopening all ports to import more. Unbelievable. A collection of clueless clowns. Brazil send them in. America send them in. Europe send them in. We have lots of freeland to bury the dead.
Regards
Dr Mark Devonish
