Opposition Senator Caswell Franklyn is accusing Government of not being fully transparent with the public regarding the state of things at Her Majesty’s Prisons Dodds, after officers there tested positive for the deadly COVID-19 virus.
Franklyn, who is also a consultant with the Prison Officers’ Association, siad yesterday that for days some officers had been complaining of being ill. He added a number of officers were fearful of returning to work, contending that it was for this reason the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) had been called out to assist.
He was speaking ahead of a national address last night by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, Minister of Health Jeffrey Bostic, Minister of Home Affairs Wilfred Abrahams and Chief Medical Officer Dr Kenneth George. It was revealed that 45 people tested positive, 32 of whom were prison officers and four BDF soldiers.
Franklyn, who heads Unity Workers’ Union, said: “The prison officers realised that people were sick for some days at the prisons and one of the people who had tested positive now has a lot of people scared because he was coming to work while complaining of not feeling well. So a lot of them are quite distraught about the whole situation because a lot of them have serious underlying conditions and this makes them more prone to . . . the virus.” (AC)
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