By Chong Lip Teck, Sin Chew Daily

After staying above the 10k mark for over 20 days, the number of daily new COVID-19 infections soared above 20k for the first time last Thursday, with the R0 values dangerously high.

The number of active cases have been in six digits for 24 days in a row, with over 10,000 reported deaths so far.

All these numbers point to the fact that the worst is yet to come!

The warning bell of rapid virus spread has been sounded for some time now, but it has failed to awaken some of our sleepers who insistently treat it more as a rehearsal while continuously immersing themselves in their comfort zones.

Only a couple members of decision-making people at our excessively bloated public institutions have so far opted to leave, but we know every well why they did so, and hardly is the reason related to the pandemic in any way.

Sure enough our planet will not stop spinning just because a couple of people have left; the vacancies they have created will very soon be filled by their replacements. Who knows opportunities and powers could fall from the sky so long as politicians know how to habitually play their tricks.

Of course, the warning bell is still heard, as it is loud enough for anyone to pretend it is non-existent.

Today, the MKN held a meeting to draw up strategies to address the issue of staggering daily new infection numbers. Are they trying to say that the five-digit daily infection numbers this past whole month do not warrant urgent actions that it has taken them this long to start talking about them? Many Malaysians are indeed puzzled.

PM Muhyiddin announced on Sunday that fully vaccinated individuals are entitled to some relaxed perks. So, should we be thankful for such generosity?

Some might argue that if they are not entitled to such benefits, why should they go for vaccination in the first place?

While we can accept the relaxation of restrictions, infection risk is still there even if a person is fully immunized. Self discipline is absolutely indispensable, or we will be forced to face the consequences of our oversight.

Before we relax the rules, modify our preset recovery plan criteria, and ready ourselves to live with the virus, it is utterly important that we first flatten the infection curve.

Before more Malaysians become fully vaccinated, we can optimistically believe that the vaccines will offer some sort of protection, as we will not become severely ill even if we unfortunately contract the dreadful virus. That said, the virus never stops mutating, and people suffering only light symptoms today may still stand the risk of becoming gravely ill tomorrow. How is our medical care system going to take the unbearable stress any longer?

At the same time, we cannot afford to overlook the long-term side effects of COVID-19 infection. Studies show that a recovered patient will continue to suffer the effects of long Covid. So, please, don't ignore the dangers of getting infected and the ensuing complications.

During the first few months of the year, when the MOH's predictions became reality one after another, we should have readied ourselves for the worst instead of allowing the virus to keep evolving.

We can actually do a whole lot more to tackle the virus, not just bringing more people together to put up a few more committees. What we want are people who deliver, not people who are good at acting and making believe, or are handsomely rewarded for their loyalty but not ability.

The state of emergency which officially ended last week has failed to deliver any positive results in our ongoing war against the virus, attesting to the fact that the proposals and abilities of the same bunch of people no longer meet our needs today.

The state of emergency has also stalled the parliament, with elected reps barred from entering the premises of the August House. There are people constantly grumbling as they specifically target a couple of underperforming MPs but are reluctant to admit that there are others actually serious about fixing the country's woes.

Former PM Najib calls the trouble-making MPs empty vessels, but what about those who blindly support their favorite politicians? They don't even have the slightest hint of the parliamentary proceedings and modus operandi of our parliament. All they know is to incite public sentiments on social media.

Our society is sinking deeper into despair, and as a matter of fact, we have a fair share of empty vessels in our midst, be they the humble people in the street or the YBs on the upper tiers of the power hierarchy.

WHO said in May that this war which had sacrificed millions of lives worldwide had to be fought with a "war mentality" from all. But, do we actually have this "war mentality" in fighting the virus?

Unusual tactics need to be deployed during such unusual times, and war-time decision-makers need to deliver themselves out of the peace-time modus operandi.

I do not personally think that the many committees we have set up are war-worthy. Even our cabinet ministers are incapable of effectively executing war-time decisions.

Perhaps we should consider setting up a slimmer but highly efficient "war-time cabinet", which may be our only way out if normal cabinet proceedings no longer work.

This, nevertheless, must not be achieved through ministers' pledging of support for a particular PM candidate. They say they don't wish to quit the government during such trying times, but the question I want to ask is: what have these people done throughout this war against the virus? If they can't even be consistent in their stand to preserve the stability of the government, how do we expect them to come up with viable solutions that will help us win this war?

Someone has said it is not time to quarrel about replacing the captain in the middle of a flight experiencing engine failure. But, if the captain is no longer fit to man the aircraft, shouldn't he consider letting his co-pilot take over? Or perhaps there is even someone more experienced in the cabin?

Time is running short, and the feel-good atmosphere has long dissipated. Trust crisis is as loud as the pandemic warning, and we need to effectuate the change right away. We are already running out of resources and energy to keep on waiting…