Sharon Turner On Mistreatment Of Bahamians In The Covid 19 Crisis

According To Me: Sharon T.

As a Bahamian, I am tired of government politicians and officials blaming the Bahamian people for an uptick in COVID-19 cases everybody with sense knew to expect when borders reopened to travel from hot spots.

Who do folk think is responsible for keeping the spread of COVID-19 at bay before July 1? Did you think it was the politicians? No. It was the Bahamian people. WE suffered. WE lost jobs and incomes and businesses and peace of mind and our freedoms. OUR CHILDREN had their educational process uprooted. SOME OF US suffered domestic abuse and child abuse trapped in homes because of curfew orders. 

WE gave up much to accomplish much. WE paid what many could not afford to fight COVID-19, but all we keep hearing from our government politicians is how Bahamians are irresponsible and “don’t behave”. Yet we were responsible enough to enable the prime minister to declare COVID-19 had stopped spreading, right?

It should be remembered that though many Bahamians lost incomes and jobs, government ministers, paid by us, did not. And while Bahamians and residents were barred from going back to their home island and their families during the border closures, MPs were given the privilege of traveling back and forth between Nassau and the islands during the shutdowns, as if they were immune to COVID-19.

And we should remember that as long as hundreds to thousands of visitors come here from COVID-19 hotspots, the virus will be here and will spread even if every single Bahamian never leaves this country. That is the reality of dealing with an airborne disease.

We cannot work together in this if we keep looking at one another as the enemy. And our politicians, whether they mean well or not, need to promote calmness and reason, rather than finger-pointing and fear.

The Bahamian people have in most cases, done what was asked of us. We are the victims of this war. PUT SOME RESPECT ON OUR NAME.

Wear your masks the right way, keep the necessary distance, and be safe Bahamas.