Fiji Labour Party leader Mahendra Chaudhry has called for a thorough investigation into how COVID-19 protocols were breached at a Nadi quarantine facility and forced the lockdown of the greater Nadi and Lautoka areas.
“Just because of the lapse or a lack of responsibility on the part of one person, thousands of families are being inconvenienced and their lives disrupted as a precautionary measure,” the former prime minister said.
He said it was believed the security personnel may have contracted the virus from a couple already in quarantine who had tested positive.
“This raises greater questions about whether strict discipline is being enforced in quarantine centres holding positive cases.
“Just one instance of irresponsibility has put the whole nation on alert because the extent of contamination is still not known. “So far the concentration has been on contact tracing which is fine.
“But we insist that it is equally important the matter of how the soldier got contaminated and passed it on to others is thoroughly examined to prevent this happening again.”
Mr Chaudhry said the “major setback for the country” needed an immediate and detailed probe because of the socio-economic cost and implications.
“Schools are closed for two weeks, major sporting events and religious gatherings have been banned, USP’s graduation ceremony put on hold and businesses have been forced to shut down.
“Not to mention the increase in costs to Government’s enforcement measures.”
Mr Chaudhry said even more worrying was the lack of information on how far the virus may have travelled outside of the greater Nadi and Lautoka areas.
