By Rawlings Magede
Zimbabwe risks losing the
fight against the COVID 19 pandemic if the laxity in the enforcement of COVID
19 restrictions is anything to go by. The 31 December event in Mbare organised
by DJ’s Fantan and Levels all but exposed the lack of appreciation by citizens
on the severity of COVID 19 in Zimbabwe. How the police allowed this event that
was attended by hundreds of people is shocking given the surge in cases of
COVID 19 over the festive season.
This past week, the sentencing of DJ’s Fantan
and Levels dominated discussions on social media with a majority of netizens
arguing that the sentencing was harsh given that other elite clubs such as
Dreams owned by the late flamboyant Genius Kadungure have continued to open its
doors to large numbers of patrons. While such a debate is necessary, there has
been a somewhat limited conversation on the complicit role played by police
officers who gave the green light for the event. That senior police officers
received bribe money from the organizers
is not a secret but rather serves to confirm the high levels of corruption
within law enforcement agents.
In a country confronted by
a pandemic that has the potential of dishing out untold fatal blows, there is
need to confront the pandemic on two levels. The first level is at the level of
the state, that has an obligation of acting on behalf of citizens by ensuring
that resources such as social protection is provided for vulnerable groups. At
this level, government must do more and go beyond cheap politicking by ensuring
that such vulnerable groups are cushioned. The other level is at the level of
everyday life in which individuals and communities mobilize each other thereby
helping in changing their behaviors to help reduce the risk of transmission. At
this level sadly we have failed. This has been demonstrated by the failure to
observe social distancing, wearing of face masks and adhering to other COVID 19
preventative measures.
These two levels must
complement each other. Public health remains a social good that is a product of
both the state and its citizens. The fight against epidemics such as HIV/AIDS
and Ebola brought with it several lessons. One such lesson is the importance of
partnerships between civil society and government. In dealing with COVID 19, we
need a similar social contract between the state and citizens, collaborating in
solidarity to keep the vulnerable safe and take care of the sick. One of the
unfortunate blunders by government is the failure to consider the disastrous
effects of the lockdown on a sizeable chunk of our population which belongs to
the informal sector. Cash payouts for vulnerable groups that help mitigate
against the impact of COVID 19 that have been channeled through the Ministry of
Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare remain shrouded in a lot of mystery.
What we have seen are just headlines mostly in the state controlled press but
there have been lack of publicity around the criteria being used to help such
groups. Social protection measures have been inadequate, poorly implemented and
hard to access. The fight against COVID 19 has also been dealt a major blow by
acts of corruption within law enforcement agents.
Of
hungry law enforcement agents and poverty
The 31 December event
organised by the jailed DJ’s eroded whatever was left of the confidence that
citizens had in the police in as far as enforcement of COVID 19 lockdown is
concerned. The several roadblocks bear testament to this. At some roadblocks citizens
without exemption letters are made to pay money to gain access into town.
Also the manner in which the lockdown is being
implemented makes citizens by standers in the fight against COVID 19.The
default frame of thinking about state-society relations has been disciplinary and
coercive. The emphasis has been on the top-down controls via a series of
sometimes bizarre regulations. In my view during the lockdown period law
enforcement agents assume the role of front line workers which means that in
enforcing the lockdown, they must not only enforce the law with brutality as
before but ensure that they also join the crusade on awareness raising on COVID
19.As highlighted before, there is need for stronger ties between the state and
civil society built on mutual trust and respect. As part of this partnership,
civil society organisations can train law enforcement agents on COVID 19
preventative measures and have collaborative programmes such as awareness
raising on COVID 19 in suburbs. We need to do much more thinking about public health
movements and pick up lessons from past epidemics. The last great European
cholera epidemic, for example was not simply eradicated by medical science.
What made a big difference in Hamburg at the end of the 19th century
was a workers’ public health movement led by socialist parties in poor
neighbourhoods, teaching people about hygience, washing of hands and boiling
water before drinking. Closer to home,HIV/AIDS in South Africa was not only
contained by the roll-out of antiretrovirals.It was the Treatment Action
Campaign that shook things up. This organisation created a democratic,
gender-aware and rights-based social movement that destigmatised the disease
and supported profound changes in sexual behavior. It built a movement for
health that linked a campaign for access to medicine to a broader call for
social justice.
In the final analysis,
both the state and citizens need to change their approach on tackling COVID
19.At a time when governments across the world are struggling to control the
spread of COVID 19, there is need for the state to change its approach and
treat its citizens as active participants in the fight against COVID 19.Without
participation by the citizens, the fight against COVID 19 will be a lost
battle.
Rawlings
Magede is a Communication for Development expert who writes here in his
personal capacity. Feedback on vamagede@gmail.com
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