Bula everyone
When permanent secretary for Health and Medical Services Dr James Fong announced today’s staggering 150 new cases of COVID-19, it should have attracted attention.
That’s the number of cases in the 24-hour period ending at 8am today.
Because if people still haven’t taken this latest outbreak to heart, then we have a major concern at hand.
It makes us look bad as citizens fighting a war against the virus.
The number continues to grow daily, and the clusters appear to be expanding as well.
It’s not something we can afford to disregard now.
Health experts have been reminding us about working together so that our system is not overwhelmed.
It is a concern, but could we be heading that way?
What can we do now to bend the curve, and get our numbers down again?
It seems many people are not taking expert advice seriously.
It seems we still have Fijians who feel they are immune to the virus.
Many are still moving around unnecessarily.
Many are still entering other bubbles, and in many instances, they are encouraged or invited to enter different bubbles.
What will it take to keep people at home?
Let’s adhere strictly to COVID-19 advice, and most importantly, let’s stay home. Stay in your own little bubbles, and do not allow anyone from outside your bubble to enter it. Please do this for yourself, your loved ones and for the thousands of suffering Fijians around the country. This is not the time to disregard the virus and live dangerously. Fiji needs you to do the right thing. Please! Stay home!
Here are some stories that made the headlines in The Sunday Times’ edition for June 20.
PAGE 1
Dr Fong’s family all vaccinated
HEALTH Ministry permanent secretary Dr James Fong says his loved ones have taken the AstraZeneca COVID-19 jab. He said that’s how confident he was in the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. “My whole family has been vaccinated and will be fully vaccinated,” Dr Fong said.
PAGE 2
Aussie team Fiji-bound
IN demonstration of Australia’s commitment to stand with Fiji, an Australian medical assistance team will be deployed to assist Fiji’s response to the current COVID-19 outbreak.
Jab an option for Fiji Police
ACTING Commissioner of Police Rusiate Tudravu, says getting the COVID-19 jab remains an option for the individual police officers.
PAGE 3
Unvaccinated at risk
GIVEN the current community transmission and COVID-19 variant, all unvaccinated individuals are at risk from the virus. A joint statement from the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health and Medical Services said recent events in Fiji and many other countries have shown how quickly outbreaks could spread despite intensive contact tracing and public health action.
WHO recommendations
THE World Health Organization’s recommendations for Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines remain the same, with the vaccines recommended for individuals aged 18 years and over.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
There are some interesting letters to the editor on Pages 6 and 7. Check out what people are talking about.
FEATURES/OPINION
We have a list of top quality feature/opinions.
JOHN KAMEA comes out with another popular BEHIND THE NEWS column.
SEONA SMILES always has something interesting to write about.
DISCOVERYING FIJI has: A VERY long time ago, before the first Europeans settled in Fiji, indigenous Fijians used their knowledge and the abundance of nature to design artefacts for war, food gathering, cultural rituals and for personal use. While modern art and craft may intrigue us with its aesthetics and, those created in the hands of those who lived before us were equally awe-inspiring.
CHEF LANCE SEETO writes about: With the weather finally beginning to warm up it’s time to dispense with the heavier winter dishes and jump into a fresh fruit pit of joy using our local fruits. Markets are bursting with ripe seasonal fruit including mango, passionfruit and guava – ready for our unadulterated enjoyment.
Bollybaat is filled with entertainment news.
SPORTS
There is a lot to read in the Sports section. We have coverage of the Euro soccer.
There’s more to read inside, but you’ll have to get a copy to know what we are talking about!
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