By: Syed Shahzaib Haider
New Zealand a country of more than 4.8 million people socially distant from the rest of the planet locked down hard and early and went into isolation. When they observed that the cases are rising fast and they felt that they are not prepared to have a large number of people dying from Covid-19, they had no option but to take some tough decisions. The Director General of health on May 08, 2020 announced that there are no new cases reported of COVID-19 in the country.
if we compare the capital of the country Islamabad having population of 1.1 million which is almost four times less than New Zealand the political leadership failed gravely here as well.
It was indeed a reason to celebrate but being a no-nonsense nation they didn’t come out to do that. Instead, the government is still urging the extreme caution for the public, however, in New Zealand, the lockdown has now been reduced to a mild level by the government. Now having faced the same threat as everywhere else Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has seemingly defeated the virus. Aged 39 she is the youngest ever prime minister of New Zealand has a degree in communications and in crisis, it shows.
Since Covid-19 has been the ultimate test of political leadership everywhere in the world. On the other hand, in Pakistan considering the fact that the population of the two countries are not the same we can say that only if we compare the capital of the country Islamabad having population of 1.1 million which is almost four times less than New Zealand the political leadership failed gravely here as well.
After doing so well Jacinda Ardern in New Zealand still has her critics. Who point to her government’s poor pandemic preparedness and her slow-moving response. Imagine something happening alike here in our country is really unimaginable people have no right even to ask the government of their ill preparations against the deadly virus, and continues change in statements even when it’s about the matter of life and death of hundreds and thousands of people in the country. We have not seen a single man standing up and asking the government about what exactly is their strategy to the ongoing situation.
Instead our government is constantly making statements on different things. The other day I was in shock when I was reading the news in which our Prime Minister offered India by saying that we can help India to manage the finance they billed for the affectees of the Covid-19 in India. To what India replied in a very disgraceful manner by saying that our budget to handle the people hit by the Covid-19 is bigger than the economy of your whole country, I don’t understand being in such a crucial situation when your entire nation is feeling so helpless having shortages of Medicines, beds, ventilators and much more when everyone in our country is looking up to you as a leader and expecting you to do something better for us, how can you offer your bordering country who is not even in your favour and never have been the help. I believe no one being a leader in this world can do such a huge mistake, and see what in return you have got they have rejected your offer and made a joke of what you did.
After seeing the seriousness of our government and whatsoever going on around in Pakistan I with heavy heart can only say one thing that God may help us to get rid of this virus and the poor ill-thought-out strategies our government is trying to put on. Because this very political elite is going to take us nowhere but in darkness. As its quite evident now that they have no plan for anything.
The writer is special correspondent and columnist at The Dayspring