The candidate of the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) for the presidential elections scheduled for July 5 in the Dominican Republic, Luis Abinader, who leads the polls on voting intention, has announced he has a coronavirus, despite which he has indicated that he will continue the campaign .
“Tonight I am writing to inform you that I have had a test with a positive result. I have COVID-19,” the opposition leader announced in a video broadcast on social networks Sunday night.
Abinader said he has taken “the measures recommended by the doctors.” “Thank God they project a quick recovery because I am not a high-risk patient,” he said, in apparent good condition.
The PRM flag bearer explained that he has detected his contagion, not because he has symptoms, but because the national tour he is doing with the so-called “solidarity route” forces him to follow a “rigorous protocol” that includes diagnostic tests for the coronavirus.
Abinader also defended the right of Dominicans to know “any information” about him and his political activity. “As you know, I have a permanent commitment to truth and transparency.”
In this sense, he advanced that he will not stop his electoral campaign. “I will keep more in touch with people than ever through the media, social media and all digital platforms,” he said. “We will continue to build the change that the country needs,” he said.
His wife, Raquel Arbaje, later announced on the same route that he also has COVID-19. “Mild body aches, fever and isolates to protect everyone,” he said on Twitter.
Dominican President Danilo Medina reacted on the social network to wish Abinader and his wife a “speedy recovery”. “They have all our support and solidarity,” he wrote.
The Dominican Republic, with 20,808 cases and 550 deaths, has already started the de-escalation, although the Minister of Public Health, Rafael Sánchez, announced on Wednesday “an intervention battle for those places (…) where people congregate in a manner inappropriate violating indicated protocols. “
The Caribbean island has postponed the general elections, initially scheduled for May 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic, and maintains the date of July 5. According to a recent poll by the Cibao Economic Center (CEC), Abinader would win in the first round with 53.5 percent of the votes.
