…in response to COVID-19

REGIONAL COVID Coordinator for Region Ten, Dr Michael Marks, credited the work of the Regional Health Emergency Committee (RHEC) for the region’s ‘small numbers and urged that residents continue to adhere to the emergency measures put in place to combat the dreaded pandemic.

“We need to be very cautious as this situation can move from being controlled to uncontrolled,” Dr Marks said, according to a press release from the Regional Administration. He was, at the time, speaking at a stakeholder review meeting to assess the effectiveness of the committee over the months it has been instituted.

Regional Executive Officer, Orrin Gordon, who heads the RHEC, commended all for what he said has been their diligent and committed efforts over the past several weeks. He reminded all that the curfew in Linden started a week and a half before the national curfew, noting that the people of Region Ten were diligent, patient and, in a large way, compliant.
While it is the view of many that restrictions will begin to be lifted after the 17th, the RHEC members are committed to continue working together until there is a complete flattening and COVID is no longer a major threat to the residents, the release said.

Regional Chairman, Renis Morian, stressed at the meeting that evaluating and reviewing the committee’s efforts is very important for documenting their work for future reference.
Regional Fire Commander, Courtney Springer, said that there is need for more sensitisation. “We need to do more through sensitisation so that persons would not feel that we are violating their freedom but rather seeking to help them,” Springer said.

Regional Health Officer (RHO), Dr. Pansy Armstrong, admitted that the health department could not have done it all by themselves.

“What we saw is the importance of an inter-sectoral and intra sectoral approach. COVID-19 has caused us to realize that all these agencies helped in making the work more effective,” the RHO said.

District Education Officer, Sonia Fraser-Pearce noted that persons from various sectors and agencies came together. “I would like to see more of the masses understand the urgency of this situation so that we can get more improved behaviours,” the DEdO said.

Manager of the Region Ten GWI operation, Rawle Friday, said that he remains impressed with the work of the committee. “We know that change for many is difficult but people from various sectors showing this level of commitment is commendable,” he said.

The Regional Vice Chairman, Elroy Adolph, said that he was mostly impressed with the level of cooperation that he saw.

“There should be stiffer penalties for those wanting to flout the regulations,” Adolph said.
Deputy Reginal Executive Officer, Maylene Stephen, expressed the view that COVID-19 will be here for a long time. “We need to ensure that a documentation process begins so that in the future we can review as to the actions we took to address same,” Stephen said.
President of the Linden Chamber of Commerce, Victor Fernandes expressed the view that significant gains have been made. “I am amazed by what we have been able to do in Region Ten with several persons asking me how we were able to do such,” the Chamber President said.

The Regional Labour Officer, Eleze Benjamin-Hall feels that the unwavering commitment and dedication helped significantly. “We were all prepared to work as a team. We addressed issues like a team as we recognized that regardless of what agency persons represented, they were prepared to work together and remain together,” she said.

Deputy Regional Police Commander, Wayne DeHearte, declared that Region Ten stands out based on his assessment of what he has seen in other regions. “The successes in my view were because of the many constructive criticisms and the willingness of various stakeholders working together to ensure that the systems being implemented were successful,” the Deputy Police Commander said.