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BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, September 14, 2020 (MMS-SKN) — Minister of Health the Hon Akilah Byron-Nisbett, while saluting Federation’s sanitation workers for the great job they are doing, has also called on the general public to follow the Covid-19 protocols if they are to lead a healthier and longer life.

“Sanitation workers have become one of the most important groupings within our society today because as we continue to face the pandemic, which is not over, we are grateful for the service that they continue to give,” said the Hon Byron-Nisbett.

She made the remarks at the 18^th Annual Sanitation Workers Appreciation Day which was observed on Sunday September 13 under the theme ‘Basic Hygiene and Good Sanitation… The Cure for the Covid-19 Virus’, and was celebrated with a worship service led by Pastor Lincoln Hazell at the Apostolic Faith Mission Church on St. Johnston’s Avenue in West Basseterre.

“The simple things that will help us to make sure that we do not have to suffer from the Covid-19, as we have seen so many other countries suffer is by doing the non-pharmaceutical measures – the simple things, wearing your masks, keeping your hands clean, soap and water or if you can’t use soap and water, to use some hand sanitisers,” advised the Honourable Minister, who is also the Area Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Three, West Basseterre.

In observance of Covid-19 protocols, sanitation workers drawn from Environmental Health, Parks and Beaches, and the Solid Waste Management were this year not invited for the service but were encouraged to follow it live on the church’s Facebook page, or on radio including the National ZIZ Radio.

The Health Minister thanked sanitation workers noting that their task has become greater as the expectation now is that all highly touched surfaces must be cleaned on a regular basis, the doors, and countertops, and anything that people touch frequently, adding that she was happy to see the microphones in the church being sanitised.

“As the Minister of Health, I know the importance of these non-pharmaceutical measures – I know the importance of making sure that we keep everything as sanitised as possible,” said the Hon Byron-Nisbett. “Those are the simple things that are important but they will be able to make sure that once we are at that place where we are able to fight that disease that many of us will not be able to get that disease and then we could lead a healthier, longer life.”

She thanked Pastor Lincoln Hazell and members of the Apostolic Faith Mission Church for their continued thrust to ensure that they appreciate and celebrate the country’s sanitation workers noting that now more than ever, many understand the importance of the sanitation workers.

“Let us continue to pray for our health workers, let us continue to pray for everyone who are on the frontline because once we fully open these borders it is those individuals who would be met first,” pointed out the Honourable Minister. “They are the ones who have to make sure that we are kept safe.”

She also thanked members of the National Covid-19 Task Force, saying: “I can’t talk about them enough, because they have been doing a tremendous job in ensuring that we keep safe, and what they have done is to ensure that the first wave was not as effective as in a lot of the other countries. Now they are telling us: let us do these things, wear our masks, wash our hands, practice social distancing – we must listen to them and take their advice.”

In the meantime, Pastor Lincoln Hazell quoting from Matthew Chapter 11 verse 15 ‘He that has ears to hear, let them hear’, observed that the people of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis “have been listening and because you heard over the past months you were able to make St. Kitts and Nevis the number country in the world that people can visit and not be afraid of contracting the disease.”