Opinion | How Hong Kong’s ‘zero-Covid’ failures are a chance to rethink and win the war
- ‘Zero-Covid’ has always been more of a short-term objective than a long-term plan. As Omicron pokes holes in Hong Kong’s defences, the government must adapt to the reality of a Covid-19 world

D-Day was the beginning of the end of the war in Europe. Our fifth wave has the potential to be a similar watershed for Hong Kong. But our leadership must understand that with Covid-19, we face more than a battle for the beaches directly in front of us. We are in a war.
Winning a protracted war, as opposed to a single battle, takes strategy and planning. Winning requires a plan to achieve one or more long-term goals under uncertain conditions. And a good strategy requires logic, imagination and flexibility to achieve defined long-term goals in a dynamic world.
Our government has yet to articulate any such strategy to succeed against Covid-19. And Covid has shown it cannot be defeated by short-term tactics designed to quell the latest wave of infection.