by Kevon Browne
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): It has been two weeks since the COVID-19 travel entry protocols were dropped by the government of St. Kitts and Nevis.
The removal of the travel requirements came into effect on August 15, after Prime Minister the Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew made the announcement on August 13.
Before becoming the Prime Minister, Dr. Drew, political leaders, candidates, and supporters of the St. Kitts Nevis Labour Party and the People’s Action Movement took to the streets of Basseterre, St. Kitts, in protest against then Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris and his government in a Freedom March on July 01.
One key reason for the march was the removal of the travel entry requirements that would allow nationals in the diaspora to return to the country without restriction to cast their vote in the August 5 General Elections.
In an interview on Freedom’s Issues with Junie Liburd on August 26, Dr. Drew reiterated that the decision to remove the protocols was based on scientific data and not a political ploy.
“We were able to use the scientific data to make informed decisions. So this was not a political decision. It was a scientifically informed decision. We have the data, and of course, we act on the data… I think that our decisions should be data-driven and not politically driven, especially when you’re dealing with a pandemic,” said Dr. Drew.
The Prime Minister alluded to the data being ignored by the previous administration for political reasons.
“I want people to know that this is founded, really on the scientific data. The scientific data has informed this decision. I was informed that they had the data since in May. And I am saying today that it was for political reasons why the restrictions were not slackened, I will say that. That’s the first thing I did, which was to ask for the scientific data.”
Dr. Drew extended gratitude to the COVID-19 Task Force for their work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic thus far.
