If there’s one area the government has performed in strongly, it’s their ability to put forward a message that they want Kiwis to hear. Two years on from the onset of the pandemic, we’re now one of the most highly vaccinated countries the world at over 95% of the eligible population. Despite the ongoing requirements for social distancing, mask-wearing and scanning in, the government’s $55 million-dollar public interest journalism fund has effectively increased the fear we feel.
I’m not downplaying the potential effects of Covid-19 as an element of the health challenges we face but with all the safety measures we now have in place including vaccination, masks and scanning, it’s time to move on from a place of fear and into a place of hope. We’ve been told repeatedly by official sources that the hospital system is ready.
The government has focused on Covid-19 to the exclusion of other key health priorities. Meanwhile, other pressing and critical issues that are unrelated to Covid-19, such as housing, infrastructure, cost of living, inflation and education –to name just a few – continue to worsen.
In other words, we need to keep Covid-19 in perspective so that we don’t lose sight of the other challenges in front of us that remain in desperate need of action. Let’s hope that in the second half 2022 our great little country can do that once more.
