EDITORIAL - Obey the law

Already one person has been charged for breaking the curfew set in place as part of Government’s response to curb the COVID-19 pandemic in Barbados, and we are hearing that members of the Royal Barbados Police Force have held more individuals who have apparently disregarded the curfew.

The authorities have recently been pleading with Barbadians as well to limit their movement during the day and to engage in social distancing if out and about, but alas, we now have a new 24-hour curfew – which is to be set in place today – given that Barbadians have not been following the regulations as previously outlined.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Dale Marshall, yesterday indicated that a number of individuals continued to work on houses during the shutdown period, even thought it was indicated that no construction work was to take place, and police officers had to be sent out to shut down the activity. Those persons were warned that they would be arrested if they persisted in trying to continue that construction work.

Acting Prime Minister of Barbados, Santia Bradshaw, has meanwhile noted that there have been large groups of persons congregating across the island, in spite of the persistent warnings not to do so. The establishments of preference seemed to have been supermarkets and mini-marts and now, as of today, all supermarkets and minimarts shall remain closed until further notice, though village shops will be open to allow those who need a few essentials to obtain them.

The old adage of “hard ears you won’t hear, own way you gine feel” comes to mind, when it comes to some Barbadians and their response so far to the measures outlined by Government and the health authorities in relation to COVID-19. If we were to look across the Caribbean, we will see a number of stringent measures are also in effect which restrict our Caribbean neighbours from wandering to and fro. They too have had to set curfews to curtail the movement of citizens, who have been operating under a “business as usual” mode.

Here in Barbados, it seems that citizens have been finding it hard to distance themselves from friends, family and familiar places. Yet, we live in an age where technology is so advanced, that we only need to flick our finger and we can connect with friends and loved ones in a heartbeat. We seem not to understand that the measures being set in place are to safeguard our well-being from this virus that can be potentially deadly for some. We seem to think that the measures are only being employed to curtail our movements unnecessarily. However, if we look across the globe and see how some international countries are battling with this pandemic, we will realise that we as a small island developing state, one that is struggling to get back on its feet economically, we cannot afford to make too many errors when it comes to handling this crisis that could set us back socially, economically and even emotionally.

Indeed, we are already feeling the heavy effects from the fallout linked to COVID-19.

Thus, it behooves us to obey the law, follow the orders and regulations given and stay put in our homes so we can help to flatten the curve. Now is not the time to be checking up on friends and running to the bread shop or village shop two and three times. Come up with a plan of what are the essentials that you need, that you can perhaps buy in bulk, and work out a strategy that allows you to batten down with your household.