The Arthur Chung Conference Centre dome was yesterday heavily sanitized as some 15 parliamentarians took ill and had to log in to the budget proceedings virtually.
As the first day of the considerations of the 2023 estimates began, nine Opposition and six Government lawmakers complained of falling ill with flu-like symptoms, but sources told Stabroek News that they all attended virtually.
“There was diarrhoea, vomiting and flu-like symptoms…pain in the joints,” Opposition Chief Whip Christopher Jones told Stabroek News as he also indicated that six members believed that they contracted a flu.
Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, said that a “massive sanitization” exercise was conducted resulting in the sitting starting late to cater for the exercise. The sitting commenced around 11:44 am and ended after 8 pm. Recently, there has been an upsurge in the number of flu-like cases here. An administrator of a private city hospital told this newspaper that many people are “coming to the emergency room with flu-like symptoms. Some tested Covid positive and some prefer not to be tested.”
