by Devonne Cornelius
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): “I will officially step down right now as Chair of the National Covid-19 Task Force and tender that resignation,” were the comments echoed by Mr. Abdias Samuel when responding to allegations of people being allowed entry into the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis without being required to quarantine and adhere to other Covid-19 Control and Prevention Measures.
“I’m hearing this rhetoric about persons entering the country and free to move about. I will like the evidence, and if you bring the evidence that someone entered this country without the proper control measures, I will officially step down right now as Chair of the National Covid-19 Task Force and tender that resignation,” Mr. Samuel stressed, adding that “nobody under the National Covid-19 Task Force watch has entered this country without any type of restrictive measures that are in place”.
Mr. Samuel was at the time speaking at the National Emergency Operations Centre Covid-19 Press Briefing on Wednesday, June 23, 2021, when he made those remarks while at the same time assuring the people of St. Kitts and Nevis that the National Covid-19 Task Force has been transparent when providing updates to the public.
“…we have been truthful and open with you with daily and weekly briefings about what we are doing. Nothing has been hidden from the general public and that was one of the first things I said to the team, our business has to be the public’s business.”
Mr. Samuel who also serves as the National Disaster Coordinator at the National Emergency Management Agency said a number of Covid-19 Control and Prevention Measures, such as bubbles for inbound air travelers, have been implemented to assist in curtailing the spread of the coronavirus disease.
As of June 23, 2021, a total of 396 Covid-19 cases have been confirmed with 301 remaining active. Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 92 reported recoveries with three Covid-19 related deaths.
