Though the governing party has fired up its campaign push that the opposition party will naturally seek to match and outmatch, COVID-19 case numbers are showing no sign of slowing down so far this year.
What used to be politicians urging the public to refrain from large public gatherings so as to limit the potential for a new surge, has transitioned into politicians leading the charge of such gatherings, which for New Providence and Grand Bahama in particular, have been among the largest publicized gatherings of 2021.
Throughout the pandemic, Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis and Health Minister Renward Wells pegged large gatherings as “super spreader events” that are the most potent threat to public health.
The threat of these gatherings was also cited as the reason for nighttime curfews so as to limit house parties and social events.
But now that political priorities have changed, so it seems, have the rules of the public safety game.
Now that tolls of an election bell can be heard in the proximal distance, the fight to press the flesh and show political dominance on the ground is overshadowing what ought to be conservative electioneering that does not sacrifice safety for the quest for victory.
Notwithstanding Wells’ recently unacceptable excuse-making for large campaign gatherings in constituencies throughout the capital, published photos and footage show that safety protocols are not being followed, thereby putting campaigners and the general public at unnecessary risk of COVID-19 exposure.
Organizing large campaign gatherings to strategically shake up the competition is perfectly fine outside of a public health emergency, which Minnis insists still exists, but in the midst of a pandemic, it is irresponsible and potentially dangerous.
We all know how this movie plays out.
Should there be an uncomfortable spike in cases, campaign events likely won’t be publicly cited as a cause even if they are known to be a contributing factor, but the public will ultimately be blamed, and will pay the price with fresh curfews and other restrictions.
And that price, of course, pales in gravity to potential health effects for those most at risk of serious illness from COVID-19.
The cases by numbers
Based on a review of figures provided by the Ministry of Health, a total of 569 new COVID-19 cases were reported for New Providence between January 1 and March 20.
During the same period, 242 cases were reported for Grand Bahama.
There were 135 cases reported for New Providence this month, and 146 cases reported for Grand Bahama.
Last December, New Providence recorded 212 cases and Grand Bahama recorded 103 cases.
There have been 47 cases with a recent history of travel for New Providence since reporting of the statistic recommenced at the end of the January, and two cases with a recent history of travel reported for Grand Bahama during the same period.
New Providence averaged 7.4 cases per day in January and February with a high of 20 cases back on February 20; and is currently averaging approximately 6.8 cases per day for March.
Whereas Grand Bahama had averaged 1.6 cases per day in both January and February, with many days reporting no cases, it is currently averaging 7.3 cases per day for the month of March – having reported 27 cases over a three-day period between March 16 and March 18.
In a statement issued over the weekend, the ministry said none of the recent Grand Bahama cases are associated with international travel, and that four of the latest cases tested positive following domestic travel – three from New Providence and one from Abaco, which recently experienced a spike in confirmed cases.
The ministry added, “The rise in these cases may be due to the increase in attendance at events and smaller gatherings.”
The largest publicized events in recent weeks on Grand Bahama have been political events.
In previous interviews with Perspective, Grand Bahama residents who tested positive via RT-PCR analysis at private facilities, complained of having received no contact from the ministry for follow-up or monitoring.
A report on the ongoing progress of nationwide contact tracing and case monitoring, inclusive of work that is to be performed by COVID-19 ambassadors, has not been recently provided by health officials.
Straying from the emerging science
In analyzing published photos and footage of campaign events and gatherings this year, there are several observations of note.
Some photos show candidates shaking hands with or hugging residents as they make their case, which is not a safe practice for campaigner or resident regardless of the existence of face masks, which many residents believe provides full protection from COVID-19.
Virtually no mandated social distancing is being practiced with any degree of consistency, and this matters with the use of face masks – particularly cloth masks – which provide only limited protection compared to surgical masks, and whose level of protection depends on the weave, thickness and fit of the fabric.
The usefulness of face masks is also impacted by factors including whether masks are completely covering both nose and mouth, as well as the constant touching and potential contamination therefrom of one’s mask to adjust it, or to eat or drink.
Constant talking, loud talking, laughing, coughing, sneezing and singing all increase the release of aerosols into the air from one’s mouth and nose, and doing less of these things while wearing a face mask can provide added protection, according to researchers.
With hotter temperatures and constant talking and campaigning come damp face masks that many do not change out during the day – a function of poor mask hygiene that increases risks for viral transmission.
In some campaign photos, candidates and their supporters are talking up close to residents who are wearing no mask at all, or who are wearing their masks improperly.
No one who has received their vaccinations in The Bahamas is fully vaccinated thus far, and even when they become fully vaccinated, there is insufficient data to conclusively determine that COVID-19 vaccines prevent the transmission of the virus.
Therefore, politicians and campaigners who have received their first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine should not presume that they are no longer at risk of contracting COVID-19, or that they cannot transmit the virus to members of the general public, almost all of whom have not been vaccinated in any event.
That fact that politicians are deciding to engage in large campaign gatherings does not change the fact that doing so increases the risk of new outbreaks – the same risk for which Bahamians come face to face with the arm of the law should they engage in the same practice.
When Jamaica’s prime minister recently chose to call a snap election in the midst of the country’s second wave, he eventually was forced to cancel rallies and similar campaign events in the interest of public safety.
The competent authority has been a decidedly less than stellar example of adherence to his own emergency orders, and since the fish rots from the head, that culture of complacency and slackness is filtering throughout the political class during campaign season.
Risky campaign behavior in pursuit of an electoral win needs to stop on the part of all guilty parties, as it is tantamount to playing Russian roulette with the country’s progress.
No matter who goes on to win the next general election, a new surge in cases brought about by large gatherings and unsafe campaign practices, will make the average Bahamian the biggest loser.
The post Russian roulette appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.
source https://thenassauguardian.com/russian-roulette/
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