Wearing a mask
View(s):At a wedding in Colombo, many people could be seen sans face masks.
At a public concert while social distancing is displayed with every other seat assigned to the audience with the middle seat vacant, some people are not wearing masks so much so that someone complained and the organisers had to run an announcement pleading with patrons to wear masks. The audience was the crème de la crème of Colombo society, an educated lot but some of them still chose to be arrogant and not wear face masks, a fundamental requirement today in a COVID-19 world.
At a private sector event promoting a product, some attendees are not wearing face masks and no one bothers to raise an issue. In buses, trains and taxis, people are seen without face masks.
At a media briefing, some ministers, officials and journalists are without face masks and sometimes sit side-by-side violating social distancing norms as well, often rules set by the ministers themselves.
In the backdrop of a gigantic cluster of over 1,000 infections arising out of the Brandix apparel factory at Minuwangoda, Gampaha, these examples are illustrated to show that all of us in society, including the media that is supposed to carry the message of precaution and should lead by example, are guilty at some point or other of failing to wear a face mask.
As I pondered and wondered whether Sri Lanka and the rest of the world would have to be prepared for at least another 12 months in taking stringent precautions against COVID-19, I was momentarily distracted by a commotion at the gate.
The trio of friends, wearing face masks (I had warned them on an earlier occasion to wear face masks – which they hadn’t done – if they wanted to continue gossiping under the margosa tree) had stopped Cardboard Sando, the muscle man from the nearby petti-kade and was asking him angrily why he was not wearing a face mask. “Aiyya, hamoma muhunu awarana andinna one (Aiyya, everyone should be wearing a face mask),” said Serapina. “Aiyo, mata amathaka wuna (Aiyo, I forgot),” said Sando meekly, even though his bulging muscles were evident under his tee shirt.
“Meka barapathala prashnayak, mokada vairasayen asaneepa kattiya godak wedi wela inna hinda (This is serious business as we are having too many cases of COVID-19),” exhorted Mabel Rasthiyadu. Putting her foot down, Kussi Amma Sera produced an extra face mask from within her blouse and gave it to Sando. “Mei, denmama meka andinna (Here, wear it right now),” she said firmly. Sando wore the face mask, quietly extricated himself from the trio and proceeded on his journey.
As I moved away from the window to write my column, the phone rang. This week’s subject is about the impact COVID-19 has had on Sri Lanka and the economy and signifies how scores of Sri Lankans are ignoring the simple protective measures of wearing a face mask at all times when in public, washing their hands with soap and water or using a sanitizer and exercising social distancing which would not only protect themselves but also others nearby.
By the way, who was calling? “I shay, how are you,” said know-all neighbour Haramanis of broken-English fame. “I was wondering about COVID-19, why even government ministers and the President are not always wearing face masks. It is not good..….noh?” In reply, I said: “I totally agree. The President is the leader of this country and he needs to be protected and should wear a face mask during public engagements because he is mixing with many people.”
“Yes he should be careful,” agreed Haramanis, adding, “many of our Sri Lankans are not wearing masks.” The conversation then moved on to other topics before I bade goodbye.
Talking of face masks, what do world leaders like Britain’s Boris Johnson and America’s Donald Trump have in common? They didn’t wear face masks to prevent COVID-19 and eventually were hit by the infection. Trump even mocked his presidential challenger Joe Biden for wearing a mask and waded into a reporter asking him to remove his mask as his voice was muffled.
Arrogance got the better of them. The infection is no respecter of persons, big or small, short or tall, it gets you in the end if you are not careful and causes a hazard to many others whom you had contact with, as they too have to undergone tests and undergo mandatory quarantine.
The Minuwangoda COVID-19 cluster is a lesson to the private sector to reduce public engagements like events, conferences and seminars or ensure basic protective measures are in place and strictly followed which is not the norm today. For several months people have been complacent, while lethargy has stepped in and even at offices, supermarkets and malls, security guards are only lazily checking the temperatures, sometimes even with instruments that do not properly work….not realising that they need to be on alert and on the ball when performing these functions.
The pandemic has had a devastating impact on the economy with not-very-promising news coming from the World Bank this week. In its twice-a-year regional report on South Asia, the World Bank said Sri Lanka’s economy (real GDP growth) is set to contract by 6.7 per cent (-6.7 per cent) in 2020 owing to the overall impact of COVID-19.
Bank officials told reporters that this was the worst economic crisis in the region in 40 years. The bank said that Sri Lanka’s economy will slightly recover next year to post 3.3 per cent growth and 2 per cent in 2022. In a statement, it said that South Asia is set to plunge into its worst-ever recession as the devastating impacts of COVID-19 on the region’s economies linger on, taking a disproportionate toll on informal workers and pushing millions of South Asians into extreme poverty. It said regional growth is expected to contract by 7.7 per cent in 2020, after topping 6 per cent annually in the past five years.
As I wound up the column, discussing an issue that confronts every Sri Lankan, rich or poor, big or small, Kussi Amma Sera walked into the room with a mug of coffee which I had requested earlier.
“Muhunu awarana gena neda liyanne (Writing about face masks),” she asked with a knowing smile. I nodded and reflected on the need for the private sector to join hands with the government in activating public communication messages to ensure that all people follow fundamental safety measures in workplaces, public areas and homes.