Dr. Alfred Dawes, Shadow Minister for Health and Wellness, has issued a forceful call for an immediate, independent inquiry into the death of baby Ramontay Rakai Ranger at Cornwall Regional Hospital on Good Friday and squarely placed responsibility at the feet of Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton.

“This tragedy is the direct consequence of nine years of neglect and a culture of no accountability from Minister Tufton,” said Dr. Dawes. “His consistent pattern of denying involvement and deflecting blame must end. The unfinished corridors of Cornwall Regional Hospital are monuments to this Government’s failed leadership. Jamaica deserves action not another PR moment.”

Dr. Dawes expressed profound sorrow for Shandale Ballentine, the 33-year-old first-time mother who left Cornwall Regional Hospital on what should have been the most joyful day of her life, instead returning home without her child. “No mother should ever suffer what Ms. Ballentine has endured. And no Jamaican should suffer because a minister refuses to lead,” he said.

The Shadow Minister was unsparing in his assessment of Minister Tufton’s public response, characterising it as a calculated exercise in evasion. Promising an investigation while offering no acceptance of ministerial responsibility, Dr. Tufton has once again retreated behind process rather than demonstrating leadership. It is a pattern Dr. Dawes says, it is not only familiar, it is dangerous.

The numbers tell a damning story. Cornwall Regional Hospital’s long-overdue renovation has ballooned from an initial $2 billion to more than $23.5 billion with no completed facility to show for it. Nearly a decade of delays, cost overruns and mismanagement have left one of Jamaica’s most critical health institutions structurally compromised. Dr. Dawes argues that the death of baby Ramontay is not an isolated incident, but an inevitable consequence of sustained institutional failure under this administration.

“Minister Tufton has been at the helm of Jamaica’s health system for a decade” said Dr. Dawes. “He cannot separate himself from its failures. Accountability is not optional for those who seek power; it is the price of leadership.”

Dr. Dawes is calling for a transparent, independent inquiry into the circumstances surrounding baby Ramontay’s death and a full audit of systemic failures within the Western Regional Health Authority. He has pledged to pursue this matter in Parliament and through every available avenue until answers and accountability are delivered to the Jamaican people.

The People’s National Party stands firmly behind Dr. Dawes in this demand. As the nation mourns alongside Ms. Ballentine, the Opposition will not allow this tragedy to be managed, minimised, or forgotten.