OPPOSITION Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar says government bungling had taken Trinidad and Tobago into the covid19 crisis, but had since presented no plan to get out of it.

She was speaking on Monday in the House of Representatives on a government motion to note the statement by President Paula-Mae Weekes setting out the grounds for a state of emergency (SoE.)

"After listening to the Honourable Prime Minister, I've heard nothing new, nothing different, no plans to go forward," she said.

"The only thing missing today was the Prime Minister did not launch off into an attack: 'Blame the population,' 'Blame Kamla.'"

Persad-Bissessar said she did not hear Dr Rowley state the basis for the SoE, and he should spend more time saying while it was necessary to strip citizens of their rights.

Lamenting the deaths of 375 "cherished" citizens from covid19, she empathised with the families of the dead, plus those struggling financially now.

She hailed the health workers, police and assorted good Samaritans making daily efforts for TT.

She acknowledged, "The Opposition has no objection to the state of emergency, given the grim and dire circumstances the Government has placed the country in. This is where we are now, because of the mismanagement and incompetence of the Government.

"So while we support it (SoE), because of where they have brought us to, at the same time we reserve the right to raise concerns. We reserve the right to hold the Government to account, and we will do that."

She said since January 2020 she had invited the Government to meet and have a bipartisan approach against covid19, but had been met with arrogance by the Government.

Persad-Bissessar said the Opposition objects to the Government presenting no realistic economic, social or health plans to get out of the pandemic, apart from locking down the country.

"Under this PNM, TT is a nation gasping for breath as we slip into a deadly coma based on their policies and mismanagement."

She asked what has been the effectiveness of lockdowns, saying the PM failed to present any data or research findings on this. She said they were basically just a way of buying time to take further action, as she asked what were the Government's plans now.

She complained the Opposition's past motions to debate covid19 had been denied, and on January 30, 2020, the Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh had told Parliament covid19 was not coming to TT. Rowley rose to say the Government had never stopped the Opposition speaking in Parliament, but Persad-Bissessar said opposition motions had been disallowed.

She accused the Government of initially downplaying the risk of the virus and blaming others, such that now the public did not trust the Government.

"Your public education exercise has not been one to engender trust."

She marvelled that while TT is being locked down, she had seen that in the UK 21,000 people were attending a football match.

Saying the Health Minister had admitted that an illegal migrant had brought the Brazilian variant of covid19 in