On Monday, October 17, 2022, I-Witness News carried a story with the headline “Speaker orders MP to wear face-mask, even as unmasked cop sits nearby”.
The story as published sought to give an account of a period during the sitting of the Parliament when the MP for South Leeward removed his mask in clear violation of the Covid-19 protocols set out to govern meetings of the House of Assembly.
The framing of the title and the zoomed image attached, suggest an inconsistency in the speakers ruling, as it depicts the unmasked individual in the photo, in close proximity to MP Stephenson who was being asked to follow the mask-wearing protocol or remove himself from the Chamber. It must be stated emphatically, that at NO point, was Station Sergeant Charles of the PM Security detail in the Parliament chamber.
A look at the video or zooming out of the photo would show that Station Sergeant Charles was sitting in the general office located behind where the South Leeward MP was sitting and as such was quite a distance from the MP and not “sitting nearby”. It must also be noted that the protocols in question govern the Chamber of the Parliament only and not the offices or other areas outside of the chamber.
The article as written by Mr Chance does include as an intended disclaimer the following: “it is not clear whether the speaker could see the unmasked individuals or whether they were in the assembly chamber or adjacent room”. If this was not clear to Mr Chance, it remains his responsibility to seek clarification as opposed to publishing a story with which he is unclear of the essential details and in so doing draw the ruling of the Speaker of the Parliament and the actions of the Station Sergeant into disrepute.
The Prime Minister, members of the government side and all persons associated with the government remain committed to following the protocols as laid out and at no point did any of these individuals contravene the rules as laid out by the Speaker of the House as advised by the Chief Medical Officer.
I trust that the information provided clears up any misconception or confusion that the title and content of the story may have created.
