By Lamin Njie
An MP took on President Adama Barrow after he removed his face mask during the State of the Nation Address.
Tumana MP Foday NM Drammeh stood Thursday and asked the speaker to ask President Barrow to put on his face mask – as the President attempted to begin his speech.
“Honourable Speaker, can you ask the president to put on a face mask since it’s the rule of the parliament? Thank you,” Drammeh told the speaker.
The speaker however appeared not interested as she chose not to react to the MP’s request. The awkward moment saw the President all the while looking at the MP.
Wearing of face mask is compulsory under the public health emergency regulations that have been triggered due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Health minister Dr Ahmadou Lamin Samateh who is the custodian of the law governing face mask however insisted there some exceptions.
“You know when we say face mask rules and you know there are quite some exceptions. There are those people sometimes when they speak… How long was that speech? It was a very long speech. So when some people speak with a face mask for that long, sometimes it creates challenges for them with regards to breathing and so on and so forth,” Dr Samateh told The Fatu Network.
