General Secretary of AKEL statements on the lockdown: “The President was saying one thing in the National Council while different measures were announced”

 

24 April 2021, ‘Astra’ radio station

The President of the Republic was saying one thing to the members of the National Council with regards the handling of the pandemic while different measures were announced after the meeting of the Council of Ministers.

Speaking to ‘Astra’ radio station, the General Secretary of AKEL Andros Kyprianou said that he heard with great surprise the Health Minister’s decisions, as in the morning during the session of the National Council the President had ruled out the possibility of a new lockdown.

A.Kyprianou added that the President of the Republic had said that everything was subject to the decisions of the Minister, but had referred to incentives for vaccinations. He stressed that the government had failed miserably in its handling of the pandemic. While the government ruling forces were saying that we are the best country in dealing with the coronavirus ultimately we actually have the worst results.

The General Secretary of AKEL underlined that only with vaccinations will we achieve better results and cited the example of Britain and Israel. “Unfortunately,” he said, “we are lagging far behind on the issue of vaccinations. Only 8% of the population has received both doses of the vaccine while the government ruling forces are mocking us by saying that in two months 70% of the population will be vaccinated”. A. Kyprianou said, we should look for alternative sources and based on the fact that there are cheap vaccines on the market, the government should have investigated this option and proceed with the vaccinations at a faster pace.

The General Secretary of AKEL also pointed out that it appears that Cyprus’ best scientists are not being made use of to confront the pandemic and the government is removing them because it disagrees with their assessments. Decisions, he said, are made to serve political interests and on the basis of pressure exerted by various groups. A. Kyprianou stressed that with the continuous opening and closing of businesses, bigger problems are caused to the economy and although health is above all else, there should be a balance in the handling of the pandemic.