We find ourselves at a point today where our immediate neighbours, and the world as a whole potentially face one of the most serious episodes in living memory. Not for a long time has the Maltese population been at risk the way it is now and this from an enemy unseen and as yet not fully understood.
COVID-19 has already attacked us psychologically, and fuelled by what we have been following over the past few days also entered our outer perimeter and breached our defenses when the first 4 cases hit 48 hours ago. The issue about this virus is not simply that it is a novel virus that attacks the human respiratory system, but is one of the fastest moving and most contagious viruses we have seen to date that puts such a massive burden on the health services of a country that it simply buckles under the sheer weight of it, leaving total destruction in its path.
We, as a nation with one solitary general hospital simply cannot take this risk and must do everything in our power to protect our already vulnerable NHS from becoming crippled and unable to maintain its daily operations. Already we are informed that the Peadiatric Emergency unit at Mater Dei has been transformed from being a functioning part of the hospital, to the virus, without a proper fall back to maintain its primary function. Our first bastion gone with the first patient alone.
We already read that the tourism industry is feeling the economic fallout, irrespective of how much we want to say that there’s no room for alarm.
We read that the English Language Teaching operations alone in Malta saw mass cancellations in the first 48 hours of Italy sounding the alarm. The massive wave cascading in to the 3 & 4 star hotels & transport sector, also affecting teaching staff and host families in its path. We also read that there were 278 flights which were cancelled. Lufthansa decided to stop 50% of its operations.
This alone amounts to millions of euros in revenues and the multiplier that goes with it.
The next waves are now beginning to hit various other sectors as we see one after the other start to already see the effects of COVID-19 and the absolute clear and present danger that we need to act against. All this at the height of Malta’s booking season sending a massive shudder due to the implications of what this signifies for the economy as a whole.
Malta has the unique advantages that a small island nation can deploy against this threat. We have clearly defined boundaries that can only be accessed by air and sea leaving us with one airport and one sea port to police and control. As our forefathers have had to do before us (The Plague as an example) effectively closing off the island to all incoming persons has seen us get through times of pandemics that threaten the health of the nation and its immediate future. The best and ideal strategy should be one that hits this beast hard. The first thing our government needs to do is act swiftly and decisively:
- Close off the island to ALL incoming traffic
- Wait for the period of time that defines the incubation period of this virus to manifest itself, and take a snapshot of the situation’s real impact on the national health situation and act accordingly.
- Assess the situation as presented by other countries with a view to opening up again under strict criteria and procedures aimed at keeping Malta COVID-19 manageable with numbers well in control
- Assist business with a proper solidarity fund and necessary bailout to sustain their operations and limit casualties from negative impact
- Reap the benefits
These simple steps will pay off. Lets face it, the reality is that we have already lost any of our tourism for the next 2 weeks anyway, so taking a hit in the short term (that we have already taken) to then regain position in the medium and long term is a sacrificial argument that carries weight. The time to act is now, failure to do so will spell a disastrous end to Malta’s tourism for 2020 and possibly beyond for quite some time.
Corporate Dispatch Editorial Team
