Community testing was targeted to test officials' response skills

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Written by: Commentary Editing Room

2020-08-31 17:15

The government started to register for the New Coronavirus Popularized Community Testing Program last Saturday (29th). As of Monday (31st) morning, 480,000 citizens have made appointments. The testing plan is for public health. In the past few days, some medical and politicians have repeatedly attacked, but they have not been persuasive, and they are not beneficial to society. The government must know how to fight for reasons and settle disputes.

The purpose of the universal community testing program is to identify invisible patients with the new coronavirus and cut off the chain of transmission. Although the plan is not perfect, it must be multi-pronged, such as tightening the quarantine exemption system at the same time to enhance the effectiveness of the plan, rather than reject it entirely.

The staff front of the Hospital Authority held a press conference on Sunday (30th) and called on citizens to boycott the national testing plan. On the same day, the government and the two offices criticized the opponents for having ulterior motives. (Photo by Zhang Haowei)

Doctors shout boycotts over public health

However, the staff front of the Hospital Authority and some political figures held a press conference on Sunday (30th) to oppose the plan. They pointed out that there would be false-negative cases, worried that the negative people would relax their awareness of epidemic prevention, and quoted representatives of the World Health Organization to criticize that universal testing was a waste of money and impractical. Although it is a good thing for society to pay attention to the effectiveness of the testing program, it must be convincing. The fact is that testing agencies will use highly sensitive reagents to reduce the chance of false negatives. As for the so-called laxity problem, in fact, the public must be cautious and hygienic at all times to prevent a new wave of infections in autumn and winter, and the Hong Kong government has been testing high-risk groups. In addition, the popularization test was completed by requesting the central government to allocate additional manpower and resources.

As long as it is based on public health considerations, it is okay to question the testing plan, and may even spur the government to improve supporting procedures. The statement of the front does not stop there. It also speculates that the Hong Kong government has a bad intention, "using the epidemic to flatter the central government, and using politics to override everything," and it has taken a stand calling for citizens to boycott. The government has repeatedly emphasized encouraging but not compulsory citizens to participate in the test. The responsibility of medical care is to present evidence to help citizens decide for themselves, to express their personal wishes and encourage citizens to participate or not, to shout boycotts at every turn, resort to political considerations, and not to override the public Are hygiene considerations?

Medical experts such as Yuan Guoyong and Professor Xu Shuchang opened up to support the plan, and many frontline doctors also signed up to take samples for citizens, which shows that the plan has a considerable medical foundation. After the opening of registration, 480,000 people signed up. Although it cannot be called a perfect response, it also reflects that many citizens take the free test for peace of mind. The government should be self-aware that since its credibility has already been low, it should explain more to the society and convince people with reason.

Nationwide testing will be carried out tomorrow. Nie Dequan said on a commercial program today (31st) that as of 8 am today, 480,000 people have made appointments. (Profile picture)

Politicization does not help while reserving differences while seeking common ground

The head of the Civil Service Bureau, Nie Dequan, who is coordinating the plan, questioned the front’s boycott and harmed others, saying that the front’s motives "must be political." Can this solve the problem and make the already politicized and emotional society look at the testing plan? Encouraging people to participate voluntarily depends on reason. Regardless of the risk of detection, the safety of sampling, etc., officials have to explain more.

Public health is inseparable from politics, because it involves issues such as ideology, public policy priorities, and funding. There must be disputes and differences. All walks of life must respect different opinions, and at the same time, remember to keep differences and seek common ground. The outbreak of the new crown virus has led to a global pandemic. It is warning the world that only by fighting the enemy together can we win the war.

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