Mind the mind-meld

IF Trump's credibility wasn't already completely exhausted, the announcement that the US FDA-approved hydroxy-chloroquine for Covid-19 treatment might have offered hope for some relief from the effects of the coronavirus.

Nevertheless, it does suggest that treatment – as well as vaccination and a cure – will eventually materialise.

We will get through this excruciating period – though we cannot yet say how bad it will get or when it will end.

This is not the first plague upon humankind, and it won't be the last. We're still very much in the eye of the storm.

As we write this, the army has been mobilised across the country to aid enforcement of the movement control order (MCO) imposed by the government.

As inconvenient as the MCO is – combined with the corresponding destruction to the local economy – it does seem clear that the best measure to confront the spread of the virus is the "hammer" (a shutdown), followed by the "dance" (monitoring).

Almost every country significantly affected by Covid-19 has opted for the "hammer" in the hope that it will stop the spread in its tracks, followed, hopefully, by sharp declines in the number of cases.

China's heavy-handed implementation of this strategy suggests that it works, with the country reporting no new Covid-19 cases. This is astounding if it is true, and reason enough for us to emulate their approach.

Unfortunately the prognosis for economic effects of the pandemic is not as clear-cut.

Besides the very few who will benefit, the rest of society will be hard-hit, with those at the bottom of the economic ladder coming off worst, as usual.

Many in retail or service industries will lose their jobs, SMEs will see their incomes tank and even big businesses may approach insolvency (though they tend to occupy pole position for public subsidies and handouts). Yet, the billionaire class will do just fine.

The charitable foundations of the world's richest families provide 20% (the largest block) of funding for the World Heath Organization (WHO), with none other than Bill Gates as its largest donor.

But did you know that his charitable foundation's top three holdings are Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway as well as fast food giants Coca-Cola and McDonalds (also amongst Warren Buffet's top holdings).

Other processed food companies and global pharmaceutical giants feature heavily, so either Mr Gates and Mr Buffet are promoting global health or betting against it – or both at the same time.

The point is – while the small guy is taking the blows, the big boys are well-positioned to benefit from the economic pole shifts that Covid-19 has unleashed.

Couple that with the coming tsunami of the digital transformation brought about by fourth industrial revolution (IR4.0) – technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), financial technology (Fintech), robotics, etc. – then it starts becoming clear that these jobs and incomes are not coming back in the same way.

When the dust settles after the "hammer", we may find ourselves broken into a million little pieces, ironically at the mercy of the brute force that we ourselves deployed, for own protection.

If that sounds dystopian, then it also should serve as a wake-up call. There is light at the end of the tunnel (however long it may take) from the pandemic, but we must ensure that it leads into a brighter future, not a darker reality.

When the Covid-19 crisis is over, we might find that the virus affected 1% of us, but this will affect 100% of us economically and much else.

One possible consequence of the pandemic is that technology will dominate. IR4.0 was coming anyway, but Covid-19 will be a catalyst speeding up this new reality.

It is essential that we use IR4.0 with a game plan that engages society instead of replacing us.

Ironically, smaller developing countries like ours have much greater flexibility to leapfrog global superpowers who are likely to obsessively attempt to preserve their legacy systems that now dominate the global marketplace.

We can either be empowered by new technologies and operating systems that the government imposes upon us as a result of this pandemic, or be overpowered by them.

The choice is still ours, as long as we remain mindful.