BY ALFRED PAGEPITU

A breach at the high-risk quarantine station at one of the hotels in Honiara’s CBD, where one covid-19 case was detected, took place yesterday.

A member of public handed over a package to a person in quarantine through the fence around 4.30pm.

Witnesses say the young man entered the Island Sun office gate and walked over to a corner of the fence shared with the hotel and threw a package over, and a quarantined person collected it from inside. [The Island Sun premises is adjacent to the hotel, and share a common fence]

Camp Management looking after the King Solomon Hotel quarantine, when notified, said their security personnel had spotted the exchange taking place and they have dealt with the incident.

“Our security personnel had spotted the exchange and were in the process of dealing with it before you [Island Sun] reported the incident and made your inquiries. So, yes we are aware of the matter and have dealt with it. We have identified the quarantined person involved and will deal with him.”

The young man who brought over the package fled the scene when Island Sun reporter began asking him questions of his activities.

Police Media, when contacted yesterday, said according to protocol Police will be expecting a full report from the Institutional Quarantine Facilities (IQF) committee following the incident. Police will only act after they receive the report from IQF.

It is understood quarantine site protocol state that family members or friends of persons in quarantine wishing to bring food should go through quarantine security at the front entrance.

The young man in yesterday’s incident clearly chose not to follow this.

When sought for comment, the Hotel Management explains that the accommodation wings, where quarantine is being done, have been condoned off to public and hotel workers, and the understanding is that quarantine camp management has their own security who are responsible for the rooms and surrounding areas, including the fence around the accommodation.

“And, the member of public who is reported to have breached protocols had accessed the fence through a private area adjacent to the hotel, which we have no control over.

“The hotel securities only look after the front public area,” the hotel’s spokesperson said.

BY MAVIS NISHIMURA PODOKOLO

GOVERNMENT is being called on to reinstate the nurses’ association SINA since there is no other body to address and promote nurses’ welfare in the country.

General Secretary for the suspended Solomon Islands Nuses Association (SINA) Mr Steven Maitani makes this call following prime minister Manasseh Sogavare’s decision to invoke absolute powers given to him under the state of emergency to suspend SINA.

Maitani said during this covid-19 pandemic health workers no longer have a body or platform that will protect and watch for their welfare, since prime minister Sogavare has taken that away from them.

“I call on the National government to quickly looking in the matter of recalling SINA because it is the only body that looks after and fights for all nurses before and during this pandemic.

“Now SINA is on suspension and nurses now live in confusion as their no other organisation focusing on nurses they will ran too to seek support from,” he said.

Maitani said the suspension of this association shows no respect to the initial service Act the nurses have.

Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in his national address yesterday said SINA was suspended because as a trade union, SINA did not prioritise national interest and security of this country at a time when we needed all hands on deck.

“It instead went ahead and broke our laws and asked their members to desert their patients. The suspension of SINA was a decision the government did not take lightly. It was taken after all the options open to government were explored and exhausted. SINA has put its own interest as a Trade Union ahead of this nation’s interest. The rationale for the suspension is very well covered in today’s newspapers,” said Sogavare.

Country’s tally reaches 13 as more passengers from high-risk Oct-25 flight test positive to covid-19

BY BARNABAS MANEBONA

SOLOMON Islands has registered five new covid-19 cases.

Four of the new cases are returning soccer players while the fifth is a passenger from Korea.

It is not clear whether the new cases are asymptomatic or symptomatic.

This brings the national tally to 13 cases; four having fully recovered, no longer active; and nine current active status.

All active nine cases are from the high-risk repatriation flight of October 25 from Auckland, New Zealand. Swift government anti-covid measures had led to the detection and red-flagging of four initial cases from that flight and the separate quarantining of other high-risk persons from the rest of the passengers.

Government had earlier warned following the detections that reports of misbehaviour by one of the positive cases during flight had potentially exposed an unknown number of other passengers to the virus, hence more cases would likely be detected.

Thus, yesterday’s announcement by prime minister Manasseh Sogavare does not come as a shock for members of public.

Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in his nationwide address yesterday said, “My good people, it is with great regret that I once again inform you all that after the second round of testing yesterday [Sunday], we have registered five more new covid-19 cases.

“Four of these cases are our returning soccer players. Thus out of the 16 players who returned from UK a total of [eight] are positive cases. The fifth case is from a passenger from Korea. All [five] new cases have been transferred to the NRH isolation units.

“These [five] new cases bring our total number of cases from the flight from Auckland on 25th [October] to nine.

“The total number of cases registered in Solomon Islands now is 13, of which the first four that were linked to the Philippines have now become negative.”

Prime Minister Sogavare said the four cases from Philippines that are now negative will be closely monitored and undergo further tests.

“They will be released once they satisfy all the testing protocols,” said the Prime Minister.

The returning soccer players are members of the local soccer academy, Royals Academy, who had been in England since last year training with an English soccer academy, Star, and playing short stints with low-level tier-nine clubs there.

Four of these players tested positive upon arrival here on October 25. One of them was reported to have refused to wear protective face mask while in the plane, and had also reportedly moved around while in flight, giving cause for government to be concerned that he may have exposed an unknown number of other passengers to the virus.

Prime Minister Sogavare, during his national address announcing the four new cases last week, condemned such irresponsible behaviour, connecting it to risking national security.

It is understood that the person will be dealt with by authorities after he is released from quarantine.

Solomon Islands so far has had a remarkable record of 100 percent asymptomatic covid-19 cases. Yesterday’s announcement by government did not disclose whether or not the new five are asymptomatic.