Merdeka from Covid-19 fear

Freedoms for the inoculated: Customers waiting in a barbershop in Jalan Masjid India, after the government’s easing of lockdown restrictions for 11 economic sectors. — Bernama

As more protocols are being relaxed and more people vaccinated, hope arises to get the economy moving again.

PARK: check. Haircut: check. Car wash: check.

The above was my to-do list for this week. I’m sure it was the same for many living in the Klang Valley, too. The majority of us have been deprived of these three things, and a lot more, for close to three months.

The relaxed standard operating procedures for the Klang Valley have been a godsend, not only for the ordinary people but also for small businesses that have been struggling to survive.

Can you imagine not being able to jog or walk in a public park for three months? Or not having any income for months because your hair salon or car wash business is shut?

I do realise that our Covid-19 numbers are still very high and I know that there are people out there who have chosen not to take advantage of the more relaxed rulings. That is entirely their prerogative.

Some of my friends have questioned if I should stay home rather than take the risk of utilising our newfound “freedom”. To me, it’s a calculated risk because Covid-19 control and prevention measures are being observed and this is what the new norm will be like moving forward.

Humans are, by nature, social animals. We aren’t meant to be hermits.

The relaxed SOP for Phase One of the National Recovery Plan (NRP) is a precursor to the Klang Valley moving to Phase Two. But this can only happen if there is strict observance as well as adequate enforcement of Covid avoidance measures.

The park I visited – Bukit Kiara – had security guards to ensure that everyone who entered scanned their MySejahtera and observed social distancing. It was the same at the car wash and barbershop.

In fact, I witnessed my barber turning away a customer who had only been vaccinated once. Even my condominium unit has made it compulsory for visitors to show proof of both doses on their MySejahtera.

But here’s the deal. Why do the authorities insist on double-vaccinated customers but only “encourage” staff to be fully vaccinated? It defeats the purpose.

Fortunately, all the barbers in my neighbourhood shop were fully vaccinated and they also wore masks and face shields, but the point is they would still be able to operate even if their staff weren’t all jabbed with a first, let alone second dose.More than 70% of the Klang Valley population have been fully vaccinated. That’s an impressive number. It is now time for further opening up of the economic sector, but the caveat should be that any business premises that wants to open has to make it a point that all staff have completed both doses and strictly ensure that only fully vaccinated customers are allowed in.

Our vaccination programme isn’t an all-encompassing security blanket. The science has shown us you still carry the risk of catching the virus and infecting other people even if you have been jabbed twice, but being inoculated will almost certainly mean that you will not end up in hospital.

Restricting movement for non-inoculated citizens may seem harsh but we do not have a choice.

These regulations will make the fence sitters and anti-vaxxer conspiracy theorists think twice before rejecting vaccines.

So, this is our best bet in beating the pandemic when we do open up: ensure workers and staff, and not only customers, are fully vaxxed.

Being Malaysians, though, there are already unscrupulous individuals trying to circumvent the new SOP by producing and selling fake vaccination certificates.

These digital certificates look like the real thing and allow unvaccinated individuals to access business premises unhindered. The authorities need to put a stop to this because widespread use of these fake certs will almost certainly jeopardise the national immunisation plan. It will mean that our sacrifice of staying in lockdown for so long as well as the sacrifices of our frontliners would all have been in vain.

As for now, our industrial heartland awaits the decision to transition to Phase Two of the NRP, joining the likes of Penang and Perak in even allowing inter-district travel and dining in.

Klang Valley numbers are still the highest but there are already signs that our super-fast vaccination rate has had an effect. Hospitalisation and ICU patients are down, the bulk of our 20,000-plus daily cases are for category one and two, which means asymptomatic or mild symptoms requiring only home quarantine.

We can’t take our eye off the ball yet, but a transition into Phase Two for the Klang Valley in the near future is vital to saving jobs and the economy. If and when this transition happens, it will be a welcome boost to the millions living in the Klang Valley just as we are about to celebrate our National Day in about 10 days’ time.

Merdeka means freedom, but this time it won’t be independence from the colonial yoke; it will be freedom from fear of Covid-19.

The die has been well and truly cast. Come Aug 31, close to 60% of the adult population in the country would have received their second dose. Our 80% target will be on hand within the next month.

With our target achieved, and as long as we continue to follow safe distancing rules, practise good hygiene and take other necessary precautions, Covid-19, just like other pandemics throughout the ages, would have been beaten.