By Shermain Bique-Charles
Shermainbique.charles@antiguaobserver,
Prime Minister Gaston Browne has been heavily criticised by a wide section of the public, after admitting that he took the first shot of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine some three weeks ago.
Browne had always said that he would be the first to publicly take the jab once the vaccines become available in Antigua.
Browne recently used his Facebook page to broadcast very little about the jab except to admit that he did in fact receive the Moderna vaccine.
Critics are now questioning why the vaccine had been administered without public knowledge and why was such an important bit of information revealed in a willy-nilly manner.
One woman wrote, “you were wrong to take the vaccine in private and then just drop the news like a bomb. People are not going take your word for it. Happy birthday, long life, health and three more terms”.
Another individual asked “how can you get vaccinated when the vaccine isn’t here yet??? Does that mean it was a special order?? Is it the same vaccine you’re bringing for the populace?”
Browne’s social media page was bombarded with remarks, to include one from a man who wrote “you take Moderna behind secret doors like a thief in the night, and you bringing Astrazeneca, the inferior vaccine for us? Where was the transparency at least when you got injected?”
Yesterday, when our newsroom contacted the prime minister for comments on the matter, he said he did not wish to make further comments on the hot topic.
”I am not commenting further other than to encourage everyone to protect themselves by taking the vaccine when it becomes available,” he said.
The vaccines, according to the prime minister, are expected to be rolled out in Antigua and Barbuda within 14 days.