Sunday, August 14, 2022
Village Voice News
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Home
  • News
  • Sports
  • Editorial
  • Letters
  • Global
  • Columns
    • Eye On Guyana
    • For Your Attention
    • Hindsight
    • Lincoln Lewis Speaks
    • In the village
    • Mind Your Business
    • Mark’s Take
    • Future Notes
    • Children & Youth
    • Bad & Bold
    • The Voice of Labour
    • Politics 101 with Dr. David Hinds
    • Talking Dollars & Making Sense
    • Jacobs On Agriculture
    • Book Review 
    • My Turn Guyana
    • The Herbal Section
    • ECHO
  • Education & Technology
  • E-Paper
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Sports
  • Editorial
  • Letters
  • Global
  • Columns
    • Eye On Guyana
    • For Your Attention
    • Hindsight
    • Lincoln Lewis Speaks
    • In the village
    • Mind Your Business
    • Mark’s Take
    • Future Notes
    • Children & Youth
    • Bad & Bold
    • The Voice of Labour
    • Politics 101 with Dr. David Hinds
    • Talking Dollars & Making Sense
    • Jacobs On Agriculture
    • Book Review 
    • My Turn Guyana
    • The Herbal Section
    • ECHO
  • Education & Technology
  • E-Paper
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Village Voice News
No Result
View All Result
Home Editorial

President Ali’s COVID-19 concerns

Staff Reporter by Staff Reporter
April 29, 2021
in Editorial
0
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Support Village Voice News With a Donation of Your Choice.

President Irfaan Ali, at a recent press briefing at State House, has expressed his concerns about citizens disregarding the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) guidelines, and has proposed measures that might be taken by his administration to mitigate the spread of the disease. Admittedly there is a growing disregard for the measures that could reduce and contain the spread of the virus, but the government also has to be honest with itself and look at how it has contributed to this.

There have been too many calls, including by this publication, for the management of COVID-19 to take a national not partisan approach. This continues to be ignored, though it is being noted the President said he will be engaging civil society, political parties, religious organisations in what he called a “national coalition.”  Where our elders admonish that, “too late, too late, shall be the cry” they also believe that “it is better late than never.” It is hoped the President’s “national coalition” is indeed that.

READ ALSO

Importance Of Preserving Indigenous cultures

Housing is a human right not a commodity

The A National Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) coalition and the People’s Progressive Party/Civic make up at least 95 percent of the electorate. The APNU+AFC is a political force that cannot and should not be ignored in fighting this deadly virus. It is also observed in the President’s list of organisations, he did not mention the trade union. It is hoped this is an oversight not deliberate. The trade union is a mass-based organisation and the only organisation that has more daily interaction with its constituents. People spend five days a week at work and there is no more fitting place to promote COVID- 19 education and prevention than through the various workplaces.

The pandemic is getting out of hand. There are so many hotspots and a growing unease the government seems incapable of handling spread. Essequibo Coast, Region Two, is now a hotspot. The truth be told the Ali government management to the pandemic is more like the United States (U.S) Donald Trump management.  And as the U.S suffered under Trump’s management Guyana is likewise suffering.

Advertisement

Observers have seen U.S President Joe Biden taking a completely different approach and is leading by example. There has been no event where the Biden administration has not observed small gatherings, social distancing, wearing a mask, and sanitising the rostrum before any presenter makes a speech. The Ali government has not taken a similar approach and is still doing public outreach in close proximity to each other, probably thinking with a mask this makes it acceptable.

There seems also to be greater reliance on vaccination not containing spread, but vaccinated people have been infected nd are spreading the virus. An aggressive vaccination programme that ignores the needs to enforce and obey all other COVID-19 precautions is equally bad. Likewise jailing people will also not stop the spread. All reputable health organisations have explicitly stated vaccination is not a cure, but should a certain percentage be vaccinated, the society could reach herd (population) immunity.
According to the U.S Centre for Diseases and Prevention Control (CDC) “Population immunity means that enough people in a community are protected from getting a disease because they’ve already had the disease or they’ve been vaccinated..[and] While experts don’t yet know what percentage of people would need to get vaccinated to achieve population immunity, vaccination is a safer way to build protection than getting sick with COVID-19.” Said CDC also advises that “… experts believe that getting a COVID-19 vaccine also helps keep you from getting seriously ill even if you do get COVID-19.”

Reducing the spread of COVID-19 still requires a national approach-all hands-on deck- and most importantly, the government leading by example. These are still to happen. Village Voice hopes it happens soonest because Guyana has become a crisis.  Countries have also started issuing Travel Advisory warnings to their citizens about visiting Guyana.



Support Village Voice News With a Donation of Your Choice



ShareTweetSendShareSend

Related Posts

Editorial

Importance Of Preserving Indigenous cultures

by Staff Writer
August 14, 2022

International Day of World’s Indigenous Peoples was observed on August 9 as is done every year. A major objective of...

Read more
Editorial

Housing is a human right not a commodity

by Staff Writer
August 7, 2022

Homelessness is one of Guyana’s most serious and obvious problems. The enormity of the issue is evident from the moment...

Read more
Editorial

Emancipation

by Staff Writer
August 2, 2022

On August 1 Guyanese joined the peoples of most english-speaking former British colonies, and Canadians to observe the annual Emancipation...

Read more
Next Post
U.S President Joe Biden (Getty Images)

Biden pitches 'once in a generation investment' to Congress

POPULAR NEWS

No Content Available

EDITOR'S PICK

Are Honesty, Decency, Professionalism, Competency no longer Prized?

May 28, 2022

UG churns out first PhDs  

March 28, 2021
Commander Regional Division No. 6 Superintendent Jairam Ramlakhan greets a resident at the Port Mourant Market

Region Six police join COVID-19 fight

October 25, 2020

‘Now is the time for quality leadership’

November 18, 2021

© 2021 Village Voice | Developed by Ink Creative Agency

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Sports
  • Editorial
  • Letters
  • Global
  • Columns
    • Eye On Guyana
    • For Your Attention
    • Hindsight
    • Lincoln Lewis Speaks
    • In the village
    • Mind Your Business
    • Mark’s Take
    • Future Notes
    • Children & Youth
    • Bad & Bold
    • The Voice of Labour
    • Politics 101 with Dr. David Hinds
    • Talking Dollars & Making Sense
    • Jacobs On Agriculture
    • Book Review 
    • My Turn Guyana
    • The Herbal Section
    • ECHO
  • Education & Technology
  • E-Paper
  • Contact Us

© 2021 Village Voice | Developed by Ink Creative Agency