Witoubou Newmai
As this writer was informed from the office that the newspaper ‘will stop printing’ within a couple of days, a feeling of despair overwhelms. On being apprised about the state of affairs of the office, this writer hobbled with a sense of forlornness to the table where on the laptop, which has been the constant companion of this writer all this time, is kept.
Is this editorial going to be the last one or for how long the halt may stretch? It all depends on how good or poorly humanity fights the new virus, the virus that has stopped the clock.
Several newspapers across have shut shops in the past days due to various factors, but all of them are fueled by the virus issue.
As the clock ‘stopped’ working in the past several days as humanity is overwhelmed by the threats of coronavirus or COVID -19, we are fast moving away from the realm of ‘the matter of choice’ and start heading towards the ‘the matter of compulsion’.
For now, things appear that the situation has not yet stretched to the desperate mode as it has not been too many days yet that people, except for those areas of ‘essential sectors/services’, halted from the real-time buzzing world of livelihood. The prevailing moment is also one-lifetime experience of this generation as the people are left flat-footed, not merely by the onslaught of the new virus but also due to the altering of life to a far extent.
From the poorest man to jet-flying corporate bosses, from the men in street to the most powerful heads of state and from the farthest corner to the other extreme end, everyone has been experiencing an epiphany that the world has been squeezed by just one concern fiercely so much that everyone feels excruciating pain at the same time.
As uncertainty looms large for real-time, and as this writer wonders when it's going to be the next time he will go back to his table to write editorials or not anymore altogether; the same despair is with the collective humanity at the moment.
The time length this virus issue prevails humanity will now determine the ambience of life and livelihood of mankind. So this is the time to ‘act locally’ so as to prevail globally. The better we understand the issue of the new virus, the quicker we can make the clock works again.
With this, it is time to realize that nothing does better for ‘me’ than working for the common good of humanity. Such an approach will also ensure that everyone returns to their respective tables at the earliest, or else the 'table' will be gone forever.
