DECEMBER 12 — So just as the world seemed to be creeping back towards some sort of normality after two years of unprecedented disruption wreaked by Covid-19, we saw a new menace rise to prominence — the Omicron variant.
First reported in South Africa, we were told this variant appears to be the most transmissible yet.
Apparently, it has over 50 mutations compared to the original Covid strain and 30 of these mutations are in the crucial spike protein which is targeted by many Covid vaccines.
The Delta variant which spread rapidly earlier this year had just 13-17 mutations. So of course, a wave of concern has followed the discovery of Omicron.
Travel restrictions were tightened. Countries that had been easing restrictions began to reimpose them.
While it’s natural to be concerned about something new, I have to say for me at this point there’s an element of fatigue.
There have now been two years of the severest restrictions imposed on travel, movement, and daily life.
Two-person rules in restaurants, bans on intermingling between households, restrictions on religious gatherings, lockdowns, the closure of virtually all nightlife in some cities etc.
It’s a level of restriction that has never been applied to masses of humanity before.
This is not how humans live their lives and while obviously a deviation for the norm as response to a pandemic makes sense, we are now 24 months in.
People simply want to return to life as usual — to be able to see their families overseas, to take vacations, to meet a group of friends, to work from offices, to not have to scan their whereabouts at every given place etc.
Omicron is another setback to dreams of a return to normalcy.
But to me — and for some reason this is now seen as an “extreme” position — the response to the new variant at this point seems out of proportion.
The reality is despite its transmissibility, Omicron is not known to have caused the death of a single person anywhere in the world and it has now been studied intensively for a few weeks.
Currently we seem open to a future of unending interventions and disruptions that ultimately hurt the poorest people the most.
The wealthy can book private jet flights, throw parties in their secluded private compounds, and invest in soaring stocks but ordinary families and businesses have paid a heavy price because of Covid-19.
We need to be clear about what we are saying when we call for more restrictions.
*This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
