Although the government’s decision to adjust the curfew regulations has been welcomed by some members of the public, it is being chided by others.
Barbuda’s MP Trevor Walker criticised the move while speaking on an Observer radio programme yesterday.
“You do not want to make a situation worse out of haste because you have not planned well, you have squandered the country’s resources…but the government has failed to perform and they have failed to save and put monies into reserve and now here you are – desperate,” he told Observer AM.
Walker said adjusting the lockdown hours in the absence of substantial testing was imprudent.
“I think the government lacks a real plan going forward with this whole Covid-19 situation. I mean, here you are relaxing the curfew; you are now having it from 6-6. I mean … on what basis have you done that?
“My real issue with the government is that they haven’t tested enough of the population,” he remarked, noting that with just 95 people tested so far, that equates to less than one percent of the populace.
Meanwhile, Walker confirmed that 13 persons are in quarantine in Barbuda – “some at home and some in a designated facility”. The latter has not been certified by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), he said, because PAHO officials did not visit the sister isle.
He however stated that Barbuda remains Covid-19 free. He said the quarantined cases included people who had arrived in Barbuda from Antigua by boat.