Dear Editor,

I am writing this letter with a full cup of frustration which runneth over with regard to how the Health Minister Fenton Ferguson has handled the outbreak of chikungunya.

It has been reported that Eastern St Thomas and Seaview Gardens is ‘ground zero’ for this virus. This mosquito-borne disease could have been contained if the Ministry of Health had done its due diligence to mitigate the effects. The health minister effectively buried his head in the sand; no talk of a containment plans, just regurgitating the same old talking points.

I am of the view that a standard operating procedure was not implemented by the Ministry of Health; therefore, the situation has hit full-blown epidemic status.

It has taken on its own pet names in Jamaica, “chicken-gunman and chicken-gonorrhoea.

It is clear that Health Minister Ferguson has dropped the ball on launching an effective campaign in stopping or reducing the spread of the chikungunya virus; therefore, one should not expect him to do much about preparing for the lurking outbreaks.

Patrick Callum

patrickcallum@yahoo.com