KHAIRY Jamaluddin is arguably the most popular minister in the new cabinet. 

Just days into the job, he has made small but meaningful changes in the way Covid numbers are presented to the public, improved MySejahtera for more practical usage, and shifted gears in pandemic management, from isolating and managing the outbreak to working around it and living with it as the virus turns endemic.

He also offered something resembling an explanation for the high number of dead on arrival Covid cases as well as cautious positivity in what to expect in the coming weeks and months. 

It is a breath of fresh air against the backdrop of overt politicking and repeated complaints of the rakyat that their demands for change were falling on deaf ears. 

By most analyses, Covid-19 is here to stay for a while and as long as it stays with us, there is a high chance it will further mutate to the point it can completely escape the vaccines.

As it is, there is early evidence that the Delta variant is more contagious and Mu is vaccine resistent. To make things worse, the economy can no longer stay closed without irreparable harm to our livelihoods.  

The government needs to weigh these factors and come up with a structured action plan that is logical, easily deployable yet flexible enough to evolve and adapt to the changing global and local situation. At the same time, it should not be too restrictive.

Apart from infections, the health of the people are indirectly affected by the virus via deferred medical attention for chronic and acute ailments, elective procedures and mental health issues. 

Measures need to be streamlined against actual, latest risks. Weightage of such risks should reflect today’s knowledge – for example, being outdoors is safer than being indoors, and as are well-ventilated rooms compared to air-conditioned, closed spaces.

Staggered visiting times to shopping malls as practised in the early days of the pandemic should be revived.

Hybrid work arrangements need to be scrutinised as spending eight to 12 hour daily in air-conditioned space carries a much higher risk of infection than even carrying out burials that are done in the open air and generally last under an hour.  

Covid has and will continue to change the way we earn, learn and play and relevant ministers need to buck up their game.  

Distance learning, e-commerce, remote working and online gym classes are innovations accelerated by necessity and the momentum needs to be maintained to keep up our competitive advantage, where gaining and to catch up where lagging  

SOPs with local and state authorities to manage outbreaks are crucial to keep Malaysians safe, and we should not consider moving into the “recovery” phase before they have been put in place or the sacrifices and hard work put in for the past 500 days by front-liners, business owners and ordinary Malaysians would be for nought.

These include deploying resources for shorter, targeted, strict lockdowns to contain a local spread and curtail it from spreading geographically. These may include personnel for roadblocks, rapid testing, contract tracing, ramping up local clinics and hospitals to manage caseload, and so on. 

For these to work, emergency aid should be provided for those who cannot go out to work or open for business.

Local officials, government agency staff and grassroots leaders need to be trained and ready to implement these measures at a moment’s notice. 

Border control, security, tourism bubbles and other economic and social activities will have to be planned around these windows, so as to maximise any safe periods’ economic or social benefit.  

These changes need to happen fast as the world rapidly adapts to its own “long Covid”. – September 8, 2021.

* Emmanuel Joseph firmly believes that Klang is the best place on Earth, and that motivated people can do far more good than any leader with motive.