The Alliance For Change (AFC) has chided the Ministry of Health over the neglect in carrying out timely fogging in Central Corentyne, in view of the spread of chikungunya in Berbice.
The AFC in a press release that there were hundreds of cases of chikungunya in Berbice and people have been swarming both the Port Mourant and New Amsterdam hospitals with symptoms.
The party said there was a concentration of cases between Whim and Kildonian as entire families have been hit by “what appears to be an epidemic.”
According to the release, the party has received complaints from residents that the health authorities were hiding the true figures—which is now placed at 62 confirmed cases.
It further stated that PPP activists were “peddling lies” that the government is unable to cope with the chikungunya outbreak because the opposition parties voted against a specialty hospital. It asserted that the population is in no need of a specialty hospital to address the situation of chikungunya since there is a National Public Health Reference Laboratory that is fully equipped.
“However, this government has not recruited a complement of trained biomedical technologists to conduct tests for chikungunya and other viruses,” said AFC.
It added that in Whim, some victims were rushed for emergency attention after they fell ill with sudden fever, joint and muscle pains, skin rash and headaches—all recognised as symptoms of chikungunya. It stated that many patients who visit private hospitals where they received injections.
“But the major neglect is the absence of fogging, which has not been done in Central Corentyne in spite of television announcements that the exercise had intensified,” AFC said and called for the government to step up precautionary measures throughout Guyana to control mosquito breeding and to set up special clinics to deal with the outbreak.
