It seems that people in Sindh are taking the pandemic a bit too lightly because of the sharp decrease in new Covid-19 cases reported across the country. With much disdain, the province’s Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah shared with the media that 2,179 people, out of the 9,244 who tested, were diagnosed with coronavirus while 26 people succumbed to the disease on Saturday. He added that the testing capacity of the province had been increased to 12,000 in order to ensure that ample amount of testing is being carried out so as to have a clearer understanding of the spread of the lethal contagion. According to recent statistics, as many as 34,654 people in the province are currently infected by the deadly virus out of which 655 are critical.
This sudden overnight rise should be a cause for great concern, since it not only proves the virus is still very much present but it also hints at the possibility that a second wave could emerge any time if we let our guard down. Owing to the sudden decrease many people must have started believing that Pakistan was now safe from the virus so they could now get on with their lives as usual. As a result, people started reverting back to their old unhygienic lifestyle, constantly visiting gatherings and violating SOPs. For them, it is important to understand that those who might have contracted the virus but remain asymptomatic are a threat to others, especially the elderly and the ill. This shows that the pandemic brings with it the important moral lesson of sacrifice — by restricting our activities and following the proper protocol, we can keep others around us safe.
Iftikhar Junejo
Jamshoro
Published in The Express Tribune, August 21st, 2020.
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