Vietnamese voters went to the polls on May 23 despite a resurgence in Covid-19 cases, with authorities reporting a high voter turnout of 95.65%.
Although the country is not as badly affected as many other nations, such as Malaysia, it has seen a sudden spike in the disease since late April. On polling day, Vietnam reported 98 new cases between 6am and 6pm. The total number of cases stood at 5,217, with 42 deaths yesterday.
According to reports, more than one million Vietnamese citizens have received a vaccine dose, with 28,961 receiving two shots as at May 22.
Voters cast their ballots on May 23 to elect 500 deputies to the 15th National Assembly (Parliament) and People’s Councils at state and other levels.
Voters were required to wear masks, fill out health declaration forms and practice social distancing.
With Vietnam successfully holding its elections despite fear of Covid-19 spreading, many Malaysians will surely be wondering when we can have our eagerly-awaited 15th general election.
Given the rising number of cases and the power games of our politicians, don’t expect it to be anytime soon.
Nepal in trouble
However, Malaysians can feel a sense of relief that they are at least better off than citizens of several other nations, such as Nepal.
Last week, Malaysia’s health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah, in calling on people to stay home, said intensive care units in hospitals were 83% full. Although our hospital facilities are hard pressed, our hospitals are not spilling over with patients.
Nepal’s hospitals, however, are full to the brim and it has no beds for new patients. It is setting up field hospitals to try and cope.
The Nepali government has called in the army to take care of the bodies of those dying of Covid-19, whether at home or in hospitals. Soldiers are the new undertakers in this nation which has seen cases rising in a second wave of infections in recent weeks.
The total number of cases yesterday stood at 513,241 while the total number of fatalities was at 6,346
Various nations are rushing much needed equipment and medicine to Nepal. For instance, the US government sent emergency aid such as surgical masks, face shields, and gloves on May 22 by chartered flight. It had earlier given 100 units of ventilators, Covid-19 testing equipment, oxygen-related materials, and personal protection equipment.
Idris Elba to the rescue
To bring some hope to Africans suffering from the pandemic, Idris Elba, who plays Heimdall in the Thor movies and stars as Luther in the eponymous TV show, will host an Africa Day Concert in partnership with MTV Base and YouTube.
Elba, if you remember, recovered fully after being infected with Covid-19 last year.
The virtual concert – with various artistes performing on multiple stages in several cities in the continent – will be held on May 25, which is celebrated as Africa Day. YouTube will stream it to a global audience while MTV will broadcast it.
Performers include Elaine, rapper Focalistic, rap duo Blaq Diamond, Bella Shmurda, Omah Lay, Gyakie, Suspect 95, Bahati and Zuchu.
The concert is to tell Africans not to let their guard down and to stay safe, as the pandemic is far from over. It is also to “reconnect” them with each other. Last year’s Africa Day concert raised money for those affected by Covid-19 in the continent.
The total number of cases of Covid-19 from 55 African countries reached 4,738,149 on May 22, with 127,983 deaths.
With 1,635,465 cases, South Africa has the most reported cases in the continent. Until yesterday, 55,802 people have died in the land of Nelson Mandela.
“Africa Day is essentially a recognition of a continent with a deep history and an incredible future. So essentially the messaging is about, hey, let’s figure out a way to celebrate, even in the dark times,” Elba told Variety.
“There’s been a real spike in entertainment and streaming and music, based on people being at home a lot more. So essentially this is a funnel for all things African and entertainment and the message would be ‘let’s find a way to now look on the bright side.’ We have our health and thankfully we’re alive and we’ve got things to celebrate,” Idris added.
Latin America’s 1 million
The number of fatalities due to Covid-19 passed the 1 million mark in Latin America and the Caribbean on May 22.
Although the region accounts for 8% of the world’s population, it had reported about 29% of all global Covid-19 deaths.
The highest number of deaths in the region are in Brazil, which reported 449,066 fatalities until yesterday. It accounts for about 45% of all fatalities in the region. Brazil has the second-highest number of deaths globally, just behind the US. The total number of cases yesterday stood at 16,083,258.
Mexico, with 221,647, deaths ranks just below Brazil in the region. It had 2,396,604 cases until yesterday.
US situation improves
While Covid-19 cases are rising in most parts of the world, they are going down in the US. In fact, they have dropped to their lowest levels since last June and the Americans are cheering.
Restrictions are being loosened in state after state, with many even dropping the requirement to wear masks in public.
Most health experts say the drop is due to an efficient rollout of vaccines, with more than 60% of people over 18 having received at least one dose and almost half fully vaccinated.
And what’s happening to our own vaccine rollout?
The US had 33,117,767 cases up till yesterday, with 589,893 deaths.
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.
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