Phillips calls for national COVID-19 oversight body

People’s National Party (PNP) President and Leader of the Opposition Dr Peter Phillips says a national COVID-19 Prevention Planning and & Oversight Committee needs to be immediately established to enable a more inclusive planning approach to the fight against the coronavirus.

In a broadcast to the nation on Sunday, Phillips said the body, which would include private sector, health professionals from the public and private sectors, trade unions, churches and civil society, would be tasked to provide oversight on implementation, along with fair and impartial distribution of benefits to members of the public and as well as private entities.

It would also be responsible for sequencing the areas and sectors to be re-started as the economy seeks to eventually reopen.

“They would also establish critical health protection protocols that would be applied to various sectors that would be brought back on stream, including critical sectors and infrastructure such as ports and airports,” Phillips said.

He argued that the chaos in St Catherine could have been averted with better and more inclusive planning and implementation.

“The Mayors of Portmore and Spanish Town have publicly stated that the measures introduced by the government did not benefit from local consultation and as a result did not adequately consider either the impact on local business or the welfare of the people. This is a time when Jamaica needs all hands on deck to design effective plans at the national and local levels,” Phillips said.

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