A medical worker takes a swab sample from a resident for nucleic acid test at a COVID-19 testing site in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin province, March 30, 2022. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
The current wave of the Omicron strain of the novel coronavirus still presents a grave and complex challenge for the country, with 1,565 locally transmitted cases reported on the mainland on Tuesday, according to the National Health Commission's report on the epidemic situation on Wednesday.
With cities implementing strict prevention and control measures to contain the spread of the virus, such as carrying out mass nucleic acid testing and large-scale lockdowns, economic activities and people's livelihoods are being greatly affected, and some local residents have complained of a shortage of basic daily necessities such as food and vegetables, as well as disruptions to non-COVID medical services.
In Changchun, capital of Jilin province, the authorities recently apologized to local residents for the short supply of vegetables as the city's two major vegetable markets were suddenly closed due to the latest COVID-19 flare-up. Foods ordered online by residents also failed to be delivered because of insufficient personnel for the supply chains.
Fortunately, such problems are being addressed thanks to prompt rectification efforts by the local governments concerned, which have made it their top priority to ensure that all suppliers, logistics companies and delivery personnel carry out their work effectively. As a result, the disrupted supply chains of necessities are now once again operating smoothly on the whole and the high prices of foods and vegetables have been brought back down to their normal level in a short time, reflecting local governments' improved governance capacity to swiftly respond to such problems.
Any control measures will have repercussions. But ensuring that people's livelihoods and well-being are compromised to the minimum has to be a basic principle of the anti-pandemic fight.
China's dynamic clearing strategy is aimed at controlling the community spread of the virus in the shortest possible time and at the minimum cost. Measures taken by officials in the name of pandemic prevention and control that turn out to be detrimental to people's well-being must be corrected immediately, for they could weaken the public support for the fight against the virus, and erode people's trust in the government.
Special attention must be paid to the vulnerable social groups including those with non-COVID medical needs, elderly residents who don't know how to use smartphones to place orders online, as well as those who live from hand to mouth.
With most locally transmitted outbreaks controlled within 14 to 28 days, most residents are resigned to enduring short-term pains for the longer-term gains.
But local authorities must ensure that they are well-prepared and have detailed plans in place to safeguard people's well-being and livelihoods when lockdowns are implemented.