DMK president M.K. Stalin on Saturday said views expressed in some quarters that the Health portfolio should be taken over by the Chief Minister in order to ensure better co-ordination to handle the COVID-19 pandemic, cannot be ignored.
In a statement, he noted that while the Health Secretary has been shifted out, the Health Minister also should have been replaced as per opinions in some section, amid allegations over discrepancies in the numbers of COVID-19 deaths.
Mr. Stalin also pointed out that the transfer of health secretary Beela Rajesh amid the pandemic and the alleged politics behind it had caused a shock to the public. He also cited reports which pointed to a mismatch in the number of COVID-19 deaths data between the Chennai Corporation and the Health Department.
Mr. Stalin also said the contradictory statements have been made on testing and quarantine norms by Chennai Corporation Commissioner G. Prakash and Special Nodal Officer J. Radhakrishnan. “Why are contradictory statements made? Is it to hide the truth? Is it because of ego issues between the Minister and the officials? All this confusion is affecting people,” he said.
Mr. Stalin also reiterated his demand for transparency in the disclosure of number of tests and deaths.
