Wednesday, February 12, 2020

It's a Rather Good Virus

I’m currently living in a region under siege. Ever since the 2019 Coronavirus, which started in the Chinese city of Wuhan, broke onto the world stage, nations around the world have been gearing up for a global pandemic. When I landed in Hanoi on the 23rd of January 2020, the Vietnamese (who have a history of hosting large numbers of Chinese travelers) had already placed thermo-cameras and ordered all immigration officers were ordered to order mask. By the time I returned to Singapore a week later, Singapore had also put up cameras.

Right thinking people are scared of this virus. Unlike HIV, which has clear forms of transmissions, all of which require intimate contact (sex, intravenous drug use and mother to child transfusion) nobody is quite sure how this virus is spread. It seems to be airborne, and so mask is one possible safeguard. However, nobody is really sure.  At the time of writing, the office buildings around my office are all conducting screenings at the point of entry and in some offices, there are additional screenings and declarations.

While this virus is “scary” from a healthcare point of view, it’s been something of gift to certain authoritarian leaders. While the administration of Xi Jinping has been criticized for not releasing information earlier and attempting to cover up and fudge statistics on the virus, the virus has helped keep the Hong Kong protestors at home, thus reducing a tough foreign policy-public relations problem.

Mr. Xi has also had the chance to brandish how quickly China gets things done – he’s managed to lock down a city of 11 million and a hospital to contain patients of the virus was built in a matter of days (the comparison with India becomes more glaring. As many Indian pundits would point out – China can do these things because its not a democracy – the Indians however, do retort that a good portion of their population are vegetarian – so despite India’s inferior infrastructure, India has yet to export a pandemic). President Xi has also brandished his “nationalist” credentials by lashing out at countries that have barred Chinese visitors.

Singapore’s Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, has also managed to enjoy the virus. Despite some criticism from the online media over the issuance of mask, the government has not wasted no opportunity in using the crisis to call for unity of the population and when there was a bout of panic buying of essential goods like the toilet paper, the government wasted no time in coming out to sound like the voice of reason.

More importantly the government has won praise on the global stage for its handling of the crisis. Professor David Heymann of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has declared that Singapore is doing the right things – taking the necessary precautions without overdoing it. Professor Heymann’s comments can be found at:


This is music to the Singapore government’s ears. What more could it want to show the population that the “international” community recognizes its competence.

The virus is scary. Every day, the ruthless half is reminding me to look after myself. Precautions should be taken. Nobody knows when the crisis will die down. However, one thing can be certain – the government will milk the crisis for what it’s worth.

1 comment

Bedazzled said...

Nice dry posit of the gahmen.

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Maira Gall