COVID CHEATS
State employees collecting cash at airports to help arrivals avoid key tracking app
THERE are growing concerns in Government circles that State employees based at the island’s two major international airports are accepting bribes to help individuals arriving in the island to avoid the measures designed to track their movement while in quarantine.
This, in light of anecdotal evidence that Jamaicans coming from overseas, who ignore the quarantine rules, are behind the recent spike in the number of positive novel coronavirus cases in the country, which climbed by 73 yesterday to 6,555, with 111 Covid-19related deaths.
A Jamaica Observer probe has confirmed that the rate being charged by the corrupt State personnel at the airports is US$200, to help individuals “beat the system”.
For the US$200, the State officials move people through the arrival areas at the airports, without them going through the process implemented by the Ministry of Health and Wellness to track the movement of individuals arriving in the island.
“You have persons coming in today and they want to go to a funeral, or party, or wedding tomorrow, so they don’t want to spend the required 14 days in quarantine. What they do is make the link, and when they come to the airport they give the State official the money to ensure that the mandatory tracking app is not put on their phone, and so they cannot be tracked,” said an Observer source.
“This is now a very lucrative side business for some persons at the airports, who are moving five/six persons each day, and collecting as much as US$1,000 [approximately $140,000],” added the source, who confirmed that one person attached to the Housing, Opportunity, Production and Employment (HOPE) Programme, who was assigned to one of the major international airports, has been caught in the act.
“But he was new to the business and was following other big men who have been running the scheme from shortly after the borders were reopened,” declared the source.
A second person attached to the HOPE Programme has also reportedly been dismissed after being linked to the scheme.
Head of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF’S) Corporate Communications Unit Senior Superintendent Stephanie Lindsay yesterday confirmed to the Observer that the police are aware of the scheme.
According to Lindsay, following investigations, the findings were turned over to the relevant agencies for action to be taken. She said no member of the JCF was found to be involved in the scheme.
Under Jamaica’s controlled re-entry programme, people arriving at the airports are screened on arrival by heat-sensing scanners for high body temperature, prior to entering the immigration hall. Those deemed to be high-risk are then subject to COVID-19 tests.
But, even without the results, Jamaicans returning to the island are required to remain in home quarantine for 14 days from the date of entry, and are allowed to leave home only once per day for basic needs, such as obtaining food or medical supplies.
Visitors to the island are required to remain in the areas deemed the “COVID19 Resilient Corridor”, which gives health authorities the ability to trace and contain their movement.
The corridor is on the north coast (seaward side) from Negril to Port Antonio; the south coast from Bluefields Bay in Westmoreland, eastward to Treasure Beach in St Elizabeth and Mandeville; and New Kingston and its environs.
To track the movement of returning Jamaicans and visitors, the Jamcovid19 mobile app was introduced, and individuals coming into the island are required to keep a fully charged smartphone with them at all times, with GPS permissions enabled.
But, several individuals have been beating the system by leaving their phones in one location while they go about their business, while others have been paying the US$200 to avoid the app being placed on their phones.
Just under two months ago, Lindsay announced that checks by cops showed that some individuals who had arrived on the island did not get the app downloaded on their phones so that the authorities could be alerted when they left their zones.
“We also found that a number of persons are giving false addresses upon arrival, so when they leave their zones or fail to log their temperatures and the police check the locations, they are not found,” said Lindsay.