PRESS RELEASE — The Saint Lucia Labour Party spokesperson on Health, Hon. Moses Jn. Baptiste has called for the removal of the country’s Tourism Minister, Dominic Fedee as the Chairman of the Command Centre- the body tasked with overseeing the Government’s response to the COVID 19 Pandemic in Saint Lucia.
During a debate in the island’s House of Assembly on Wednesday 24th February on a Government resolution to borrow $80 million for the Government’s COVID 19 response, Jn. Baptiste, the Vieux Fort North MP, launched a blistering attack on Fedee’s position as the person in charge of the Command Centre.
“I call for the reallocation of the Minister of Tourism; he should not be the head of the Command Centre. He should be removed from heading the Command Centre because every time he speaks in relation to the Command Centre, 75% of the time he speaks about tourists being able to drink wine, the hotels; in this crisis, in this disaster time it should not be the Minister of Tourism heading a medical disaster called COVID 19 where thirty two people have died.
This must be a joke; when it is time for war against viruses, diseases or anything like that or if it is a war, you have soldiers, a general in charge of the war. This Minister of Tourism is no general in charge of no medical disaster in this country; and if we are serious we will follow the science. Let him take charge of tourism; nothing wrong with that. If he is charge of Tourism let him be in charge of tourism.”
Jn. Baptiste also told the Government to reconfigure the Command Centre “with technical people who are able to analyse the data and plan for the outcomes in a scientific and objective manner.”