The 14th GE and Coronavirus

I have been quiet for more than 2 years. I had planned  to post  my comments on the result of General Election 14  held 2 years ago   but I kept procrastinating as usual. PH government had collapsed  unexpectedly and   my review  is not relevant anymore now.  Who would have thought it  would happen in less than 2 years  but many of my friends have been praying that one day PH government would be replaced with more  competent  government and politicians and not making empty promises. 

2 years ago,  on 10th  May 2018 BN government lost to PH in the 14th GE after  it had been in power for more than 50 years. However  PH government was short lived. Tun Mahathir, the 7th prime Minister gave his resignation letter to Yang DiPertuan Agong without naming his predecessor and informing his allies in the PH government that were  DAP, PKR, PAN and PPBM respectively at that time.

He resigned after  being  pressured by Dap and PKR to   hand over the post to Anwar from PKR  as he had promised before the 14th GE. He said that he intended to do but at later time this year. He resigned from the post and  later his party  PPBM  pulled out  from the coalition on the same day. PH lost the majority parliament seats and that    brought down  PH government automatically . God works in mysterious  way. In just 22 months in power, not even full half term the  PH government collapsed.

The Yang dipertuan Agong or YDP  had chosen Muhyiddin Yasin  to be the prime minister.  He  had the majority and support  from the MPs to be  the prime minister. The YDP swore  Muhyiddin in as the  the 8th prime minister  on 1st March 2020 under PN coalition that consists of UMNO, BN, Pas and PPBM
 

During the  political turmoil  and drama in  Malaysia,  coronavirus or covid 19   diseases   were spreading slowly in Malaysia  and all around the world . The first covid 19 case was first reported in Wuhan, China  in early January this year. On March WHO  declared Covid 19 a global pandemic. Covid 19  spreads from person to person whether that carrier  is symptomatic or asymptomatic. Studies have found out that people who are infected with Covid 19 carry similar levels of the virus in their nose, throat and  lungs whether they have symptoms or not. The most common symptoms of Covid 19 are sore throat, fever, cough  and shortness of breath.  The disease  spreads primarily  through contact with the infected person when they cough or sneeze. It  also spreads when  someone touches a surface that has virus on it. The virus  can live and survives on surfaces from 2 to 9 hours depending on type of surfaces, temperatures, viral loads, etc.  To date   it has claimed  a total lives of more than 700,00 thousand people worldwide and keep on increasing and  does not seem to be slowing down with United States, Brazil, India and Russia leading the rise in fatalities. US has more than 5 million cases with 165,000 deaths. I guess not even Thor and Iron Man and his team of superheroes from all around the galaxies  if they came alive  could  stop this  virus from spreading and killing people.  Humans are weak and fragile. but yet some people are arrogant and  think they will  life forever. 

Many countries in the world  including  Malaysia  have imposed lockdown  since March  for several months  where shops, businesses, offices and schools were closed to control the spread and transmission of the diseases  through social distancing. 

Now most of the world has come out of lockdown but the pandemic is far from over.  Malaysia  has lifted the lockdown  phase  by phase  since end of May and now   almost all   business and offices  are open and  schools have  started but with strict social distancing measures in place, temperature screening  and contact tracing.   Malaysia's  Covid 19  cases    so far are  under control and  total active cases to date   are  around  three digits  below 200 cases ,  thanks to our Director General of Health , Ministry of Health, front liners and police.  However things could change drastically with spike in cases  if people do not practice social distancing and if the authority loosening   border controls and restrictions  infections imported by returned travelers from overseas  can spread rapidly to the local.  Malaysia is now imposing all foreigners and Malaysians returning from overseas to to be subjected to  14 days quarantine  order at quarantine stations set by the government to stop imported infections after allowing just  weeks ago for Malaysians  returning overseas to self quarantine at home. Some people in Malaysia and other countries too just do not care to adhere to rules and law  to self  isolate  at home   when they return from overseas and this is risking other people lives. In Islam there is  saying or hadith   of Prophet Muhammad p.b.u,h that says when you hear that there is plaque break out in a region do not go in but if you already  there do not come out of it. It is a same concept of quarantine that we are doing which is to decrease  the element of human contact to the lowest possible  level  from the  deadly virus by staying put at home.

We have to learn to  live with coronavirus and the virus is not going to go away for foreseeable future until we find the vaccine or cure. For now we have to live with new normality which means  wearing mask and  keeping our social  distances at office, school  and public places etc   and washing our hands often.  

Whenever I drive my car and hear the song Blinding lights by the Weeknd it always reminds me of  those days during lockdown  when  Covid-19 had  started ravaging the world  and many cities  around the world  were left deserted and empty as people were forced to stay at home to contain the pandemic. I hope we are not going back into lockdown but I cannot dismiss the possibility. Only time can tell. Life is short.

       

      Taman Tasik Shah Alam