[Reporter’s Notebook] Prime Minister Kim said "30,000 is the peak"... but reality proved otherwise

On the 18th, when the number of new COVID-19 cases in Korea exceeded 100,000 due to the spread of the Omicron variant, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, attending the 'Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters Meeting for COVID-19 Response' held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, announced the adjustment plan for social distancing measures. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] "The estimate of 100,000 to 200,000 confirmed cases is from very pessimistic people. The peak will be around 30,000 cases."

On the 25th of last month, when concerns were rising about a surge in COVID-19 cases due to the spread of the Omicron variant, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said this to reporters. The number of confirmed cases exceeded 10,000 the very next day and surpassed 30,000, which the Prime Minister had predicted as the peak, within about a week. Finally, on the 18th, the daily confirmed cases even exceeded 100,000, which Prime Minister Kim had dismissed as a "very pessimistic estimate."

Since some experts predicted that the number would remain around 20,000 to 30,000 in February and only approach 100,000 in March, this statement could be seen as an attempt by the head of the executive branch to prevent excessive public anxiety.

However, the government is forgetting one thing. The moment the government's optimism collapses, public anxiety explodes. Antonio Gramsci said, "Be pessimistic with reason but optimistic with will," yet the government repeatedly makes mistakes in preparation as even reason is consumed by optimism.

While promoting "Omicron response," the government has been busy lifting all previous quarantine measures one by one. The PCR tests, which were once proudly available to anyone, have been drastically restricted, and home treatment, which was said to be for safety, has effectively become "home neglect" except for high-risk groups. It often takes 2 to 3 days to notify results after PCR testing, and there are frequent cases where patients' conditions worsen because they do not receive timely contact. The patchwork measures issued daily leave the public confused and increasingly chaotic.

The Omicron pandemic has not yet reached its peak. There are predictions that daily confirmed cases could reach 360,000 in about ten days. It is highly likely that this will become a reality that can no longer be dismissed as a pessimistic forecast. What the nation must do is to protect the lives of its people. It is not a matter of choosing between pessimism and optimism but a reason to consider and implement what preparations are necessary for public safety.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.