…said the restrictions won’t be for a lifetime

A 44-year-old father of three who makes a living selling fresh seafood to roadside buyers is appealing to the populace to adhere to the current coronavirus restrictions.
Rajesh Jagnarine of Coldingen East Coast Demerara has been plying his trade, near the Shell Gas Station, on the East Coast Public Road, at Ogle, for over 20 years, supplying fresh fish, shrimps and prawns. His customers are mainly persons in passing cars as the location is a stretch for most persons to walk – except they live really close by.

Jagnarine is calling on persons to adhere to the government’s stipulations on distancing, staying at home and sanitising with a view to arresting the spread of the virulent disease, said to have originated in ‘wet markets’ in Wuhan, China, late last year. “Keep adhering to the measures and take all precautions. The less people get [COVID-19] it will be better for Guyana. The more people get it, it will be worse,” he warned. “Because it will be spreading if people continue to gather. And if people must go out then they should wear their mask,” he said, while wearing a face mask himself.

“The lockdown is very good for all Guyanese. They can’t gather up because if this happens people who have COVID-19 would spread it more. Imagine if a family doing everything to protect themselves and one family member go out and get it and bring it back to the household is the whole family will get it,” he said, adding that persons should continue to lean on their faith or religious beliefs to get them through this time of crisis.

“If persons go out and gather unnecessarily then the whole house will be under lockdown so it is best to protect yourself till this thing done. It won’t be for a lifetime,” he said.
Jagnarine said that despite the curfew and other restrictions, he has not experienced any significant dip in business. “I am doing normal business in terms of sales,” he said. However, he noted that his operating hours have been adjusted to take into consideration the restrictions.

He said that except for some Mondays and some religious holidays such as Good Friday, he usually is out there plying his trade daily. He would commence work at about 06:00 hours and work until midday or just after, depending on how quickly his stocks are sold.

The man said the eldest of his children is furthering his education in religious studies with the aim of becoming a pastor, another is at the University of Guyana while the youngest is in secondary school. He said that the child is taking lessons during the lockdown period in order to keep in tune with his academics. “He is taking lessons because just like how the country lockdown, children’s brains could lockdown too if they are not kept active,” he said.

As Guyana grapples with a climbing number of infections, the Ministry of Public Health is on a campaign to educate and foster behavioural change, to ensure that the curve begins to flatten, and that those in care or under evaluation are cleared medically.