Filenews 9 March 2021 - by Marilena Panagi
Even under strict conditions and restrictions, the dining areas will probably get the green light for their reopening from next Tuesday.
For the students of the Gymnasium, however, the scene is still blurred and it should not be considered certain that they will return to the classrooms on March 16th since the views are once again divided. In any case, of course, and regardless of the intentions of the Ministry of Health, the Minister of Education will have the final say, while it is not out of the question that he will start leaning towards one side or the other, at today's meeting of the President of the Republic with the members of the Scientific Advisory Committee, before the Ministerial is called upon to take its decisions at Wednesday's meeting.
Minister for Health and Scientific Advisory Committee, exchanged views yesterday during a teleconference between them. The main indicator for scientists is still the introduction of patients with coronavirus into hospitals. However, this time, it seems that the "reading" of the data is somewhat different, as the decrease in the average age of patients on the one hand and the small number of patients in need of hospitalization in the Intensive Care Units, on the other, represent significant differences from the picture presented by hospitals during the Outbreak of December and January.
The fact, of course, that the number in need of nursing in general is once again consistently three-digit, cannot go unnoticed by the members of the Scientific Committee, who also express their concern about the increased number of admissions recorded in recent days, especially in the Hospital of Limassol.
On the substance and with regard to the next stage of relaxations, the majority of scientists seem to be in favour of the reopening of the dining areas, subject to conditions and strict conditions, and it is not remote at first to accept their regulars, only outdoors or with a very reduced number of regulars per hour, on their premises. Among the members of the EES, there are still some more "conservative" voices, although as everything shows from the government's point of view the intention to reopen the dining areas is now clear.
With this in hand, the second big issue, for the next phase of relaxation, is the return of high school students to their classes.
In this case, opinions among the members of the Scientific Committee differ, as on the one hand there are scientists who stress the need to "unblock" children who have already been in their homes for almost three months and on the other hand, there are those who stress the need for a little more delay since the frequent detection of cases in school units that have already reopened is causing concern. The positions of the Ministers of Finance and Labour, since the ages of the students of the Gymnasium, also require the support of parents who are absent from work in order to be at home with their children, also play a decisive role in taking a decision on this matter.
The members of the EES also seem to be positive about lifting bans on visits to outdoor areas such as parks and squares. In this case too, however, strict protocols and restrictions will be a prerequisite.
As for further relaxes in gyms, private schools, dance schools and other group or individual sports, churches, theatres and cinemas, the scene is not yet clear and final decisions will probably be made directly by the government on Wednesday morning.
The meeting of scientists with the President of the Republic is set for 10 a.m. this morning and the President's consultation with his ministers should also be taken for granted, before the Cabinet meeting scheduled for Wednesday. On Wednesday afternoon the President of the Republic will hold a meeting with the administration and management of the Organization of State Health Services.
I guess the text messages remain.
In 8998, restrictions on travel and texting will probably remain in operation for the next fortnight, although it is not excluded that the number of messages per person will increase to 3 per 24 hours.
The curfew measure will remain in place, except for the difference, that if the dining areas do indeed reopen, the start time will be moved one or two hours later, i.e. from 9 p.m. to 10 or 11 p.m.
