Blame and fear for team of 5m
Perhaps sensing blood in the water for the Government as Auckland begins its second lockdown in a fortnight, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has pointed to the personal failures of a few and stoked the fear of death by Covid.
‘‘Covid kills people . . . We must never lose sight of the reason we take these measures,’’ Ardern said, opening a press conference with two ‘‘reminders’’ yesterday afternoon.
Yet another community Covid19 case, a 21-year-old man who tested positive on Saturday evening, has led to a fourth lockdown of Auckland. But this is the first time the Government has, in the face of a discrete cluster, returned to level 3 restrictions after climbing down – an acknowledgement the prior short, sharp lockdown did not work.
Ardern and her Covid team were traversing a fine line yesterday – holding the 21-year-old responsible for the virus’ potential spread, while insisting it is not about blaming individuals for failing the team of 5 million.
Compliance among a few has become a serious problem. Recent community Covid-19 cases went to work at Kmart and KFC when they should have been selfisolating, and the 21-year-old hit the gym after a test.
But the pitch for personal responsibility masked a more difficult, politically prickly question.
Could more have been done? The exit from the last lockdown was clearly the riskiest bet the Government has taken yet – though even the wariest Covid experts were supportive after first expressing caution.
The virus has continued to spread since. Health officials were following up hundreds of contacts yet to be tested and more than 1500 people were asked to self-isolate before Saturday, an ask which came with lacklustre enforcement and financial support. Ardern insisted yesterday the Government had not misjudged the risk of further spread. Instead, the weight of the country’s expectations had been placed on the shoulders of the Papatoetoe families unfortunate enough to receive this latest bout of Covid.
‘‘We were asking those at highest risk to remain in isolation, and they had very specific asks of them. The alternative would have been for Auckland to stay at alert level 3 for 13 days, just in case people were not
‘‘Covid kills people . . . We must never lose sight of the reason we take these measures ...’’ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
following the guidance that they were being given,’’ Ardern said.
‘‘I am not sure Auckland would have considered that a reasonable ask.
‘‘We can succeed again but we need people to follow the rules.
‘‘And we can operate with these short, sharp measures, if people do what we ask them.’’
Back in lockdown, with the clock reset on further spread of the more transmissible UK variant and the Government scrambling to catch up, it is reasonable to expect a full 14 days of restrictions may be required.
There will be more cases. Yesterday, a further community case of Covid-19 tested positive, a member of a family captured by the cluster already in quarantine. Thus making it hard to argue against the Government’s move to lockdown.
But – with human error a recurring feature of New Zealand’s flirtations with Covid-19 – it is fair to expect some frank introspection from the Government about whether its expectations were unreasonable.
Were there too many loose ends? Why were 11 students of Papatoetoe High School not reached, not even visited at home, when they could not be contacted by phone? One of these students passed the virus to a sibling, who went to work at Kmart.
Was it reasonable to expect thousands to self-isolate, with nothing but a phone call to check in, and for incentive a leave support scheme of $1176 for 14 days of isolation?
That would leave less than $100 after paying the median fortnightly rent in Papatoetoe.
So yes, follow the rules. But asking one community to carry the country’s burden while we wait for the vaccine won’t be enough.