Two years to the day after the start of the pandemic, Prime Minister François Legault concludes that “we did what was necessary to save as many lives as possible”.
This is what he wrote in an open letter published in various media on Friday, the day of national commemoration of the victims of COVID-19.
Unlike last year, the Legault government will not hold a ceremony to honor the memory of the 14,141 Quebecers who succumbed to this disease.
At most, the government announced that it would fly the Quebec flag at half-mast in the National Assembly and everywhere else where it has offices.
He said he wished for a sober day, “out of respect for the families and loved ones of the victims”. Prime Minister Legault has therefore not planned any public outings.
In his open letter sent to the media, Mr. Legault argues that he will remember “all his life these first weeks, daily press briefings”.
“I never thought I would have to show up in front of the cameras every day to announce restrictions and tell people what to do. I would even say that it was against nature for someone like me.
“But we did what was necessary to save as many lives as possible,” he said, saying he was proud that we had “shown all the solidarity of our people, especially towards our elders”.
After a first “lightning” wave of COVID-19, Mr. Legault maintains in his letter that things have improved thanks to the actions taken by his government.
“We managed to quickly strengthen our health system by training more staff. We managed to keep our schools open to minimize the effects on our children.
“We succeeded in one of the most effective vaccination campaigns on the planet. And from tomorrow, we will have removed almost all the restrictions, ”he welcomes.
“We managed to save thousands of lives together, but we also lost too many mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers. We lost brothers, sisters, friends, ”wrote the Prime Minister.
He affirms that Quebec has a duty to remember, and that every March 11, “the Quebec people will remember”.
The CAQ wants to move away from the subject of COVID, says the PLQ
However, the Liberal Party of Dominique Anglade finds it difficult to explain the government’s decision to give up a ceremony for the disappeared. He points out that 4,000 deaths have been added to the toll in the past year.
These people “also deserve to be highlighted for their too hasty departure”, reacted the party in a press release.
“The Coalition avenir Québec has made the choice for several months to move away from the subject of COVID. For François Legault, 4000 deaths do not deserve a few minutes in his diary. What an insult! »
The Liberals reiterated, on Friday, their request for the holding of a public commission of inquiry, in order to “clearly determine what were the good and bad decisions made in the pandemic”.
This would help provide answers to bereaved families, according to the Liberal Party, which promises to launch such a commission of inquiry “as soon as it is elected”.
In the last few days, Québec solidaire and the Parti québécois had also stressed the importance of holding a public inquiry, as well as an official ceremony on March 11 for the victims of COVID.