While the government continues to be accused of hiding and distorting data on the number of covid patients and the number of deaths, evidence of such incidents in several districts was revealed to the media last week.
That was with the release of factual information to the media by the directors of the regional health services.
True covid data was revealed in three more districts yesterday, showing that the difference between the official statistics of the Epidemiology Unit and the actual data is extremely alarming.
For example, the Epidemiology Unit stated that the number of covid infections reported from the Kegalle District on August 16 was 13, but according to the report of the Kegalle District Regional Health Services Director, the number of covid patients reported on that day was 505. Accordingly, the Epidemiology Unit has reported to the country thirty-eight times less than the actual number of patients.
From the outset of the covid epidemic, WHO experts, Sri Lankan medical experts, and other health professionals have strongly emphasized the importance of up-to-date factual information to control an epidemic. This is because if the correct statistics are not received at the right time, the right steps for epidemic control cannot be taken at the right time.
If the data is delayed due to lack of facilities and staff, it could be justified. But it is one thing to hide and distort the information of the people, and to mislead the people of the country by giving a completely wrong picture of the spread of covid in the country. It is clearly a despicable, horrible conspiracy. We as a country are still paying the price in hundreds of lives every day. According to official figures released yesterday, 171 covid patients have died.
Last week, Mohamed Muzammil, a ruling party MP, publicly accused of distorting covid data by a top military official and two top medical experts in the epidemiology unit. But so far no action seems to have been taken by any authority in this regard.
Despite all this information being leaked, if the country’s top authorities do not take any action, the people will have to think that these things are happening with their knowledge. Otherwise, if they still do not know about this, the people of the country will have to think that the country has become anarchic.
Following is the news feature broadcast by Derana TV regarding this covid data fraud.
