Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley is pleading with Barbadians to remain guarded and adhere to the rules and regulations put in place to safeguard against the spread of COVID-19.
She made the appeal on Wednesday evening, at Ilaro Court, during an address to the nation, where she announced a number of changes to her Cabinet.
Ms. Mottley reminded the population that Barbados is not immune to the virus. “We are as susceptible as any other country to a second wave of this virus. We are forced through circumstances and commonsense to reopen our doors to commercial flights and we do so on the basis of risk. Our protocols are risk-based; we have been as discerning as is practical ….
“I join with the COVID Czar, Mr. Richard Carter, in … begging Barbadians and visitors alike to adhere to the tenets of social distancing and the practice of taking personal protection against the spread of the virus – the washing of hands and all of the other things that we know we should do,” she stated.
The Prime Minister said she knew it was difficult to mask up, but urged the public to recommit to engaging in actions that would protect them.
“I know that especially at this time of year, the urge is … to get out and socialise and party a little …. But we simply can’t do it in a way that is going to be risky. It is too dangerous and where we have … given persons the opportunity to congregate, we want them to do so in a way that is safe and certainly not with the pictures of them up underneath each other,” she stated.
It was against this background, Ms. Mottley said, that she told the Czar and other authorities to play it safe and clamp down on those institutions that were not enforcing the requirements in the protocols.
“It’s not out of a desire to be wicked or to be malicious to people. But you have to take responsibility for your facilities if you want to be able to have persons, patronise them. And we ask you, therefore, to work with us because we know that the bounty is at the end of the road if we work together as a people,” she insisted.
The Prime Minister reminded all that the virus does not discriminate, as reflected in the fact that it has affected from world leaders to ordinary people.