President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa was informed at the Intelligence Unit (07) Committee on Intelligence (07) that 120 protests had taken place across the country during the past month which had accelerated the spread of Covid across the country.
It has been pointed out that at least 1,500 people have taken part in each of these protests and that this mobilization without following health advice has accelerated the spread of covid across the country.
There has been an increase in the number of patients visiting hospitals in several major cities, including Colombo, on a daily basis due to Covid symptoms, especially as the situation in hospitals in the Western Province is now unbearable.
According to the intelligence services to the President, did the protests spread the virus? Is a question that needs to be asked? It is also a matter of concern whether Covid became infected as a result of these protests.
Travel restrictions between provinces
At the beginning of the third wave of Covid, the government first imposed restrictions on inter-provincial travel. The police spokesman also told the media on a daily basis that no one could travel between the provinces. But as far as I know, people have been traveling around the provinces since April. Even at a police roadblock, the officers would only stop a motorcycle or a three-wheeler. Other vehicles do not stop.
Several people I know travelled from Vavuniya to Galle, from Gampaha to Anuradhapura, from Matale to Colombo and from Polonnaruwa to Galle without any hindrance. Also, according to a police spokesman, there were sometimes no police roadblocks at the intersections.
Public transport
When the country reopened after the easing of traffic restrictions, there was no adequate public transport for the people to travel when workers were called to work. That is a fact that the government must accept. For example, in a private bus, people have to wait for hours to get on the bus until it is full. The train service was also available in the morning but in the evening the train service was reduced.
Many trains were canceled, especially on the days when train drivers were vaccinated, PCRs were done and Covid was feared. People had to travel in a few limited trains. Not only Delta but all diseases could be transmitted in these trains which were struggling to breathe.
Health advice in public places
The other thing is to wear masks and clean your hands. Mouth masks are worn by many people today. Many people also do hand washing. But in public places, as Covid did in the first wave, there is only water to wash hands today near the entrances to institutions. There are many places where there is not even a bar of soap. There is no water in some other places. When you see the dirt in some sinks, you feel like vomiting instead of washing your hands.
Allowing people to hang out
In some tourist places, there was no obstacle for the people to go and gather as they wished. Especially in recent days, a large number of people have been flocking to the Eththukala beach in Negombo. The family went on outings. It was the government’s action zone that allayed this fear of the people. The Kataragama Perahera was also held last month. The people went from Colombo to Kataragama. The procession led by the Prime Minister was also positive in the end.
Rising food prices
The people who were being beaten by the Covids were facing a food crisis. Many people became helpless as the prices of essential food items went up day by day. They lacked nutritious food. As a result, the nutrition of the poor was disrupted. Health deteriorated. Those who had money ate and drank.
People’s problems
As the problems of the people increased day by day, they started protesting. This government was the first to arrest those who raised their voices for fertilizer. From then on, the teachers and the fight entered. In fact, it was like waking up a sleeping snake with a stone. The government pushed these people into the streets to protest. Now people have taken to the streets for the Kothalawala Act without teachers.
Country opening when WHO warns
Despite warnings from the World Health Organization (WHO), the government decided to leave the country and recruit all workers. This too was ultimately a paradox for the people themselves. The people of the country suffered from the arbitrary decisions of the government. At least the expectant mothers were not taken care of. When pregnant mothers were called to work, the government had forgotten that those were two lives.
Covid death and Covid vaccine
Covid deaths are currently near 5,000. The cause of death was identified by health officials as the number of people over 60 years of age. And that they had not been vaccinated and having chronic diseases and poor health.
And when it comes to the vaccine, nearly 600,000 people have been waiting for more than five months without the second dose of the Covid vaccine.
The above are just a few of the reasons why the Covid spread. There are many more. But the intelligence services have not seen these facts but the number of protests participation.
Shani
(Photo extract from Sirasa Media Network.)