LEO VARADKAR has admitted Ireland will face “some of its darkest days” in the weeks ahead as the battle to slow the spread of coronavirus continues.
Speaking in a message posted on Twitter this Easter Sunday, the Taoiseach predicted that the peak of COVID-19 cases will hit the country later this month.
“The number of hospitalisations and sadly the number of deaths continues to rise,” he said.
“So, we cannot lose focus. We cannot lessen our efforts. In fact, we need to redouble them for the next few weeks.
“It’s more important than ever that we persevere. It’s possible that we haven’t seen the peak yet.
“When it comes, perhaps later this month, we will experience some of our darkest days. So we need to maintain our discipline and resolve in the knowledge that better days are to come.”
Wishing the public a Happy Easter, he added: “This is a special time of the year when we recall some of the major turning points etched into our national story – the Easter Rising, becoming a Republic, the Good Friday Agreement.
“For many of us Easter is a special moment in the Christian calendar, marking the resurrection, the Good News and what it means for the world.
“This Easter we reach another crucial point in our history – our fight against Covid-19. Thank you for heeding the advice of our experts, for interrupting the spread of the virus, sheltering the most vulnerable, protecting our health service and ensuring the staff who work in it have not been overwhelmed so far.
“Your action are making a difference. The spread of the virus is slowing.
“So today – whether we have faith or not – let us remember the Easter message, a message of suffering and sacrifice followed by rebirth and renewal, and above all a message of hope as winter turns to spring.
“When this emergency ends, we will mourn the dead, comfort the bereaved, and be together again.
“We will re-awaken the sleeping giant that is our economy, our people will go back to work and our businesses will reopen, and taking what we’ve learned, we will build a better society at the end of this – a great society for a great people.”
Your actions are making a difference. The spread of the virus is slowing. It’s more important than ever that we persevere. Taking what we have learned we will build a better society at the end of this — a great society for a great people. Happy Easter. pic.twitter.com/elLd4XKc9O
— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) April 12, 2020
The warning comes after Ireland recorded its biggest increase in new cases of COVID-19 since the outbreak began.
Health officials confirmed 553 new cases this past Saturday, April 11.
As of Saturday, there have been 8,928 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
Another 33 people have also died.
25 of these people had an underlying health condition. 14 were female and 19 were male while the median age of those who died was 82.
