(Trinidad Express) Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh’s daughter and son-in-law have been infected with Covid-19.
Deyalsingh revealed yesterday that the couple, who live in the United Kingdom, both contracted Covid-19 some time ago. He shared the news via his Twitter page.
He wrote: “At the height of T&T’s Covid response when there were daily medical briefings, my wife and I got some sad news. We found out that my daughter and her husband, who reside in England, both got Covid. No one knew this at the time. We were very scared.”
The UK has been hard hit by the pandemic, with more than 298,000 confirmed cases and close to 46,000 deaths.
Deyalsingh shared no further details about his family members’ current health, but said despite his fears, he continued to carry out his duties to protect this country.
“But I did not miss a day’s work as your MP or as your Minister of Health. It was not easy, but my commitment was to keep the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago safe,” he stated.
“So when you hear persons say that the PNM Government doesn’t care about our citizens abroad. THEY ARE WRONG! Covid-19 has affected us all. It is my commitment and the commitment of this PNM Government to keep the country safe now and after Aug 10.”
August 10 is the date of the general election.
‘Not the same situation’
Deyalsingh’s posts attracted hundreds of “likes” and many comments wishing his family members a speedy recovery.
However, some Facebook commenters said it was wrong of Deyalsingh to compare his daughter’s situation to nationals stranded abroad with limited resources.
“Ok but is his daughter and son-in-law fighting to come back home to their families, struggling to eke out survival with little to no support? Nope they’re not so I don’t understand what he means when he says he cares about stranded nationals,” one person commented.
Another said, “I am sure your daughter is well taken care of and has everything she needs in England. That is not the case with some nationals who have run out of money, food and are facing homelessness because they can’t afford to pay a hotel or charter a flight to come back home. Apples and oranges! I wish your daughter and son-in-law a speedy recovery but their situation is not the same.”
Some commenters questioned whether Deyalsingh was using Covid-19 as an “election ploy”.
“And that was a paid political advertisement,” one person quipped, as he noted the minister’s use of the hashtags #SafeWithTerrence and #VOTEPNM in his posts.
Deyalsingh had earlier posted, saying, “After Aug 10 there is still going to be Covid-19. Who do you want to lead this country on Aug 11? The future is in your hands.”
