Dear Editor,
While attending a funeral recently in my neck of the woods I heard an elected official giving greetings and he spoke about the deadly Ebola virus. He made mention of a rumour that was being circulated that Ebola was in Jamaica and that it was in Mandeville. In his statement he told the congregation Jamaica was not ready for this virus.
It is my view that the official's statement was quite careless because, instead of bringing hope and comfort to those who were grieving, he instead brought a message of worry and despair.
In recent times, many people who are supposed be leaders have behaved in a similar fashion. Sometimes based on the statements they make one can't help but wonder if these people want the virus here.
While I must agree that our people must be informed of the day-to-day developments concerning the measures Government is putting in place to prevent the virus from coming here or the plans they have should it ever get here, we should not construct our statements in a way that causes panic in case the worst happens.
At a time like this, given the seriousness of the issue, we all should be in discussions and consultations to come up with a strategy to protect the people of Jamaica from this deadly virus.
Let us not seek to gain political mileage, but instead seek to educate the people to significantly reduce panic when it does bappen.
In the final analysis, let us be mindful of our responsibility to protect our families, communities and country. Let us seek to educate ourselves instead of casting aspersions and strengthening rumours that will destroy instead of unite our society.
Gary Rowe
magnett0072004@yahoo.com
Watch what we say
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While attending a funeral recently in my neck of the woods I heard an elected official giving greetings and he spoke about the deadly Ebola virus. He made mention of a rumour that was being circulated that Ebola was in Jamaica and that it was in Mandeville. In his statement he told the congregation Jamaica was not ready for this virus.
It is my view that the official's statement was quite careless because, instead of bringing hope and comfort to those who were grieving, he instead brought a message of worry and despair.
In recent times, many people who are supposed be leaders have behaved in a similar fashion. Sometimes based on the statements they make one can't help but wonder if these people want the virus here.
While I must agree that our people must be informed of the day-to-day developments concerning the measures Government is putting in place to prevent the virus from coming here or the plans they have should it ever get here, we should not construct our statements in a way that causes panic in case the worst happens.
At a time like this, given the seriousness of the issue, we all should be in discussions and consultations to come up with a strategy to protect the people of Jamaica from this deadly virus.
Let us not seek to gain political mileage, but instead seek to educate the people to significantly reduce panic when it does bappen.
In the final analysis, let us be mindful of our responsibility to protect our families, communities and country. Let us seek to educate ourselves instead of casting aspersions and strengthening rumours that will destroy instead of unite our society.
Gary Rowe
magnett0072004@yahoo.com
Watch what we say
-->