KINGSTON, Jamaica— The People’s National Party (PNP) today blasted the Government for what it called ”very negligent management” of the country’s vaccination drive following reports that people turning up at vaccine sites for their second doses have been turned away.

In a statement a short while ago, the PNP noted that the National Arena reportedly shut its doors at 10:30 am, and conflicting information was circulated about whether or not citizens could return.

 “This is very negligent management of a most sensitive process, and really is not good enough. The public is entitled to receive timely and accurate information as to what is happening,” Opposition Leader Mark Golding said.

He also called on the Government to be more transparent about the vaccine supply situation, saying, “the public needs to know whether or not those who are now due to get their second dose will receive it within the medically recommended timeframe. If there are not sufficient vaccines for the remaining 30,000 people requiring their second dose, what is being done to rescue the situation?”

“With less than two per cent of our population having been fully inoculated, Jamaica continues to lag behind other Caribbean nations and much of the world. Such low inoculation rates will inhibit our return to ‘normal’ and undermine everyone’s efforts to get the economy back on track. It is no exaggeration to say that we are relying on vaccines to safeguard the future of the country,” he added.