Daily Times

The world has gone through an irreversible change. The COVID-19 pandemic has shaped the lives of people around the world. The global lockdown is the single biggest experiment in human history. Coronavirus is affecting everything; from global economy to the way people work, travel and interact. The fear for many people and countries emerging from lockdown is that the second wave has arrived. The new spike will be deadlier than the first. Are we ready for another apocalyptic coronavirus episode?

Once again, coronavirus infection rates are rising, bringing fear of more drastic restrictions on our freedom. Health authorities in Pakistan are battling hard to resist the deadly virus that has seemingly refused to die down completely. We are past the peak of this disease. COVID-19’s second wave has hit Pakistani population hard and it’s hospitals harder. The wave of new cases is forcing Pakistan to go back into lockdown but our government is desperate to come up with new strategies to avoid the return of that strict national lockdown which was ever so damaging to the economy. There is a fine line between keeping our economy alive and saving lives from the deadly contagion. Government has to play a unifying role, and also the opposition needs to be conscious of not getting opportunistic and using the pandemic as a political creel. The cost of duplicitous political gaming can cost us heavily in the coming months.

The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked global  destruction like a powerful hurricane to such an extent that it has exposed the best of the best healthcare systems of the world. These systems have been devastated by the catastrophic impacts of the virus. Unfortunately, our health chassis is not equipped to combat a novel disease like the coronavirus. The system is as old as Pakistan itself. Our tertiary care hospitals are incommensurate to fight successive waves of this pandemic. The ground realities of the first wave have depicted that the capacity of public hospitals is very limited. On the other hand, private hospitals; with all the capacity and capability, are no less than business ventures.

The second wave of coronavirus is linked to colder temperatures and the reopening of educational institutes. The authorities are re-imposing mini smart lockdowns to counter the viral spread as we are flouting social distancing and mask wearing cautions. It has been instructed to all provinces to ensure health protocols for the safety of people. We all need to stick to our social bubbles, wear masks and practice social distancing. This much is owed to our next generation that we leave them a better planet by being a better version of ourselves in these testing times.

Every time you think of going out just because you are bored, step back. Every time you think of going to shop for fun, step back. Every time you plan a casual meet and greet with folks, step back. Every time you plan to visit a sick person with underlying and suspected symptoms, step back. Every time you feel you can outfox this virus and nothing can stop you from taking that vacation to another country, step back. Every time you think you can get away with not wearing the mask, step back. Every time you choose to not socially distance yourself, step back.

This is the second wave, and we expect ourselves to be wiser, more cautious and more vigilant than the first time. We need to follow the SOPs and keep ourselves indoor as much as possible. We have to be our own guards and we have to flatten our curve.