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The banquet was probably held too early. At the end of June, some 2,000 people gathered on Prague’s Charles Bridge at a table over 500 meters long with food and drink that they had brought to symbolically celebrate Corona’s farewell. The worst seemed to be over and previously strict measures against the virus were relaxed. But now Covid-19 has returned to the neighboring country in full force.
The number of new corona cases registered each day sometimes rose to more than 3,000 a day in the country of 10 million people. And Czech virologists already warn that this number threatens to rise to 8,000.
The development in the Czech Republic was very similar to that in Austria, only more extreme in all directions. The Czech Republic also issued a strict lockdown in the spring. The Prague government closed its national borders more quickly and completely than its Austrian counterparts, and there was also an even more stringent mask requirement, sometimes mouth and nose protection even had to be worn outdoors. The numbers remained very low, the Czech Republic was considered a model country in the fight against the crown.
In the summer, even more than in this country, the great slack followed: the mandatory mask was almost completely abolished, in Prague, for example, you only had to wear a mask in the subway and in sanitary and social facilities. The Vltava metropolis also lived up to its reputation as one of the party capitals in Europe. Additionally, some returning travelers brought the virus to the Czech Republic. With the increasing numbers, testing capabilities were soon exhausted – citizens now have to wait up to a week for an appointment.
Meanwhile, the numbers in the Czech Republic have skyrocketed. According to the EU health agency ECDC, the Czech Republic ranks second behind Spain in terms of the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in an average of 14 days with 193. In Austria there were 101.3 new infections for every 100,000 inhabitants in the last two weeks.
Now the Prague government is trying to take countermeasures: It has reintroduced a very comprehensive mask requirement, and bars and nightclubs must close earlier. But that’s just the beginning. Prime Minister Andrej Babis has already announced that the measures will be tightened again; it is even possible to declare a state of emergency.
A new health minister should fix it now
It was precisely the billionaire at the top of the government who prevented the measures from being hardened earlier. Epidemiologists had already warned in August that the government had to react to the development of the crown. Health Minister Adam Vojtech, who belongs to the populist ANO von Babis movement, also produced a corresponding catalog of measures.
But Babis granted his minister’s measures. He apparently feared they would not have been well received ahead of the regional and Senate elections, which are due to take place in less than two weeks. Now the former businessman has admitted that it may have been a mistake.
Vojtech announced its resignation on Monday. At a hastily organized press conference, the 34-year-old declared he wanted to create “space for a new solution to the crown situation” in the country. His successor will be Roman Prymula, an epidemiologist who has previously advised the government. This should be sworn in on Tuesday, Babis announced. The fact that Prymula was elected gives a clear indication of future crown policy: Prymula has recently advocated a significant tightening of the measures. No doubt, Babis was aware of this when choosing his new minister.
