Daily News Editorial

Towards post-pandemic recovery

Yesterday, the total number of COVID-19 infection cases in Sri Lanka reached 309 while the number of recoveries reached 100. The slow increase in infections detected spiked suddenly by over 20 cases in the past two days prompting health authorities to be thankful that they had not quite begun the phased relaxing of the tight curfew regime.

Now the scheduled relaxing of the prolonged curfew in the Western Province and Puttalam district has been postponed till April 27. At the same time, the phased relaxing of the varied curfew regime imposed in other provinces will be implemented but with tighter precautionary measures.

Despite the slow, continued rise of infection cases, the number of fatalities has remained at seven. The added new infections all seem to be restricted to people who have come into contact with already identified COVID-19 positive cases. The health authorities, therefore, remain cautiously optimistic that the current trend in the epidemic in the country has remained within the existing pool of patient contacts. This is an indication of a probable containment of the epidemic although its suppression to the level of a controlled illness, pending a cure and vaccine, is not yet in sight.

This slow evolution of the pandemic within the country fully vindicates President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s decision to abruptly and drastically suspend national life on the two most important fronts: the urban-industrial economy and public politics.

Whole sectors of economic life were quick to follow governmental advice and shut down. The citizenry’s instinct of self-preservation, including collective survival, has helped make the national lockdown a success in comparison with many other countries.

But public politics is another matter. The immediate life threat of an epidemic prompted quick popular co-operation with the mandatory health strictures. However, the long term prospects for the nation are something that both engages public discussion and mobilises people, especially those sections worst affected. So does the manner of the safety nets now being devised and implemented for the benefit of those severely affected sectors.

The President had dissolved Parliament early with the intention of holding a snap General Election, the reason being the need for legislative reform for better governance. But with the COVID-19 outbreak, he did not hesitate to put off the planned early elections.

When COVID-19 worsened into an epidemic within the country, with Parliament non-functioning, the Prime Minister acted to convene meetings with all Parliamentary political parties for the purpose of briefing them on national action to manage the epidemic. These consultations were certainly useful in keeping all sections of the public, as represented by these parties, informed of the contingency measures. It no doubt helped reassure the citizenry that the national leadership was not only acting competently but was doing so with sensitivity to public accountability.

By mid-April, however, indications of an early containment of the spread of the disease prompted some thinking in favour of resuming the delayed Parliamentary hustings. A General Election date in mid-May was speculated on by some political circles. This prompted concerns that this would be too early in the course of the on-going epidemic and could reverse the current positive trend.

However, the powers-that-be wisely waited for the National Elections Commission (NEC) to decide. The Commission has now done so after careful consultation with all relevant authorities and an assessment of its own operational capacities countrywide in the face of the health threat. The June 20th date now set by the NEC will give the health authorities ample time to bring the epidemic well under control, unless there is some unforeseen reversal either medically or administratively.

Now the country’s political parties as well as their citizen loyalists have the challenge of maintaining the epidemic countering social discipline even as they get on to an electioneering footing. Any attempt to cut corners, to downplay or ignore the current social hygiene strictures will be fraught with the risk of a revived epidemic that will be fatal to many more citizens on the one hand while undermining the economic recovery efforts on the other.

Much of the election campaigning, once it is formally allowed to kick-off, will have to be through the electronic and cyber media. The NEC can be expected to diligently monitor the news media industry as well as the Internet spaces to ensure non-partisan coverage and, ethical and legal behaviour online.

At the same, the citizenry will watch to see whether politicians will take undue advantage of the epidemic impact to win votes. Those provincial level politicos who attempt to do so by favouring this or that vote bank in the distribution of social welfare hand-outs and the implementation of safety measures should be singled out by the party leaderships and disciplined. The Governing party has a special responsibility in this regard since it is closer to the reins of power.

A steady progress toward holding Parliamentary Elections will certainly complement the President’s current early steps toward economic revival.