A second chance for our government with the second wave of Covid - 19

 

It was Chief Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion, the Esama of Benin and the man whose noisy Airline, named after

his village, Okada, led to the calling of Bikes Okada, who posited that a failed politician be given a second chance.

He said this in respect of his son, Lucky Igbinedion, who had a lackluster performance as the Governor of Edo State.

Today's story is neither about Lucky nor about Edo State. It is about the second wave of the Covid- 19 pandemic. The Pandemic came calling in January 2020 and as we are about to approach 2021, it is threatening again.

Truth be told, our government failed woefully in looking out for vulnerable citizens during the first wave of the Covid - 19, this is an opportunity for the government to get it right.

It is on record, that the second wave of the historic Spanish flu, killed more people than the first wave, hopefully for our government, this should not be the case.

The looted palliatives could present government with a convenient excuse to fail once again but it is salutary that a mendicant government having learnt from the experience of the lockdown in the first wave, is refusing to toe that line this time around.

It is quite gratifying that in the absence of any succour, people are not, totally, prevented from lawfully earning a living.

The present approach of partial restrictions sure comes with it's own cost to business and the economy. Government should not turn a blind eye to this. 

The affected sectors deserve palliatives even if it is in the form of soft loans. This way government would be atoning for it's initial dismal performance that further drove people to penury and the economy into the present recession.