Sneaking out with COVID-19 is foolish – CBA boss

WESTERN BUREAU:

LAMBERT JOHNSON, president of the Cornwall Bar Association (CBA), says it would be foolish and illegal for any COVID-19 patient to sneak out of Jamaica at this time, as was the case in Grenada recently, when a man left that country after testing positive for the virus.

“Someone who tries to sneak out of the country, in ordinary circumstances, would commit a breach of the Immigration Act and be subject to prosecution. Now, with COVID-19, there is heightened surveillance by the persons who are empowered with ensuring that our borders are secure,” Johnson told The Gleaner recently.

Last Wednesday, it was reported that the Grenadian, who tested positive for the respiratory disease, sneaked out of that country with his family.

He was one of two persons who were sitting in close proximity to another COVID-19 positive patient who arrived in Grenada on a flight from the United Kingdom on March 16.

Johnson said that, presently, a COVID-19-positive patient would find it difficult to gain entry in any other country. He also noted that, even without the COVID-19 threat, persons trying to sneak into Jamaica would find it difficult to do so.

UNWISE MOVE

“Trying to sneak out of a country after having been found to have COVID-19 would be exceedingly foolish. Where would you get treatment, and who would take you in, knowing you have this affliction? It would be a very foolish move to leave the country by yourself or with assistance from anyone, as that gentleman in Grenada did, after you’ve been diagnosed,” said Johnson.

“Even without COVID-19, it was always an offence to come into this country without coming through the proper channels, and it will subject you to deportation. But with most airports closed worldwide, unless there’s a special charter, the person might have to remain here until the circumstances that now face us pass away,” the attorney added.

Meanwhile, Western Regional Health Authority Regional Director Errol Greene voiced concern that persons may seek to illegally enter Jamaica without undergoing the necessary screening.

“I’m not so concerned about our formal entry points into the country, because the airports have very strict protocols. My concern is for the informal entry points, because persons may be coming in by boat and not being subjected to the rigorous tests of those who come through the formal entry ports,” said Greene.