THE Covid-19 virus is refusing to go, mutating from one wave to the other, pausing a great danger to humanity.
Last week, a new and deadly variant was detected in South Africa and Botswana, sending panic across the globe. Many countries have since decreed travel bans to avoid the virus hitting their nations.
The new variant is reported to have “more energy, tactics and camouflage”.
“We don’t cough, No fever, it’s joint pain, weakness, loss of appetite and Covid pneumonia!
“Of course, the death rate is higher; it takes less time to get to the extreme. Sometimes no symptoms, let’s be careful. The strain is not domiciled in our nasopharyngeal region! It directly affects the lungs, which means window periods are shortened,” this is how the new variant was described in one group of South African doctors.
Since the outbreak of the deadly virus in China in December 2019, thousands of people have died, millions infected; and economies across the globe have been wrecked.
Zimbabwe was also heavily affected and with this new variant, extra measures have to be taken to prevent it.
While we may get solace from the assurance by Health minister Constantino Chiwenga that the country is ready for the new variant, we cannot allow complacency.
Prevention is better than cure.
We must continue to adhere religiously to the World Health Organisation Covid-19 protocols of masking up, sanitising, social distancing and above all vaccination.
We agree with Chiwenga that as we go into the festive season, our borders, which unfortunately have been porous, must be tightened. We have no choice except to thoroughly screen both visitors and returning citizens at all our points of entries.
Zimbabwe was a huge victim of imported Covid-19 infections and we should know better on how to deal with tourists and returning citizens.
We have noted with concern that vaccination has been slow in the last few months and it’s high time the programme be ramped up to achieve herd immunity.
There is now a need for the government and the private sector to launch a massive campaign to educate the masses that Covid-19 is still with us and it’s now part of our way of life.
It is the new normal, hence all measures must be put in place to avoid complacency that would result in the new variant hitting the country with devastating consequences.
The appeal to citizens is that they should never be complacent. They must always be on the guard against the deadly scourge. If we are not careful, we will perish!
