THE United Workers Party continues to be alarmed about the rising number of COVID-19 infections in St. Lucia. We therefore call on the SLP Administration to act decisively to arrest this national health crisis and avert any further loss of life.
We are particularly alarmed by the revelation that the Delta Variant has been detected on island. This same Delta variant has overwhelmed the Martinique Health system re-sulting in numerous deaths and thousands of infections. Prime Minister, Philip J Pierreās show of unpreparedness at Thursdayās press conference is reason for much trepidation.
The United Workers Party also calls on Minister of Health Moses Jn. Baptiste to address the problem of the several hundreds of positive COVID-19 cases currently in home isolation. We implore the government to swiftly institute publicly managed quarantine centers in the form of unused hotels to better control the spread of COVID-19.
The United Workers Party is also of the view that the recent declaration by the US en-couraging Americans not to travel to St. Lucia can have devastating effects on our economy. We must manage carefully this situation in order to protect the thousands of jobs which have only recently returned to the tourism sector. This Level 4 rating can have a devastating effect on that sector which could cause a systematic collapse of the tourism industry. Any such fallout will have far-reaching implications on government revenue, businesses and jobs.
We encourage all St. Lucians to get vaccinated and follow the protocols.