We need military precision to fight deadly invisible enemy

By any definition, the situation the world finds itself in is known as biological warfare. The enemy, Covid-19, is as formidable an enemy as can be found.

It destroys the fabric of society. It disables and kills, disrupts the economy, restricts freedom of movement and worship, disrupts education, and helps undermine authority.

It is a mistake to think of coronavirus as only a disaster. A disaster has a timescale, after which the aftermath sets in. But this current crisis self-perpetuates; the disaster worsens daily and the aftermath escalates.

Critically, we have closed our borders. This is a move associated with a declaration of war. This type of enemy is routinely studied in military institutions (including our National Defence College) under the subject of nuclear and biological warfare, and models on how to tackle it have been designed accordingly.

Covid-19 has fooled many nations, Kenya included, into focusing all their attention on the medical angle as if it is the sole battle front. Some countries are looking for others to blame, and except for a few European and Asian nations, the rest of us have the wrong approach.

The most critical battle front for this disease is the community. Once it is lost, victory is almost impossible and we will suffer great casualties.

We have three weapons at our disposal: awareness, attitude change and actions (3As). Because they do not appear impressive, most countries have taken them for granted.

Those in authority rush to enforce 'actions' before citizens have fully understood the first two steps. This leads to negative attitudes and failure to comply.

A missing element in this war is a comprehensive command and control structure. Associated with this is a sometimes discordant, inadequate or absent communications and logistics (human and materials) support system.

Who are the commanders in this war? Is there a hierarchy? Apart from the national response team and county teams, how low does the command structure go? How much do the lower echelons know?

Are there teams dedicated to fighting this war, or are they doing it as part of other daily activities? How can it be prioritised?

In the military, every level of command, including the smallest cell of three soldiers, has a level of independence but with clear linkages at every step, right to the top, so that specific tasks are prioritised and executed precisely.

Does every village headman or Nyumba Kumi leader know their specific commands?

Medical personnel are not our front-line soldiers. They are our strategic reserve forces, our special forces. These forces should be deployed sparingly and used to hit the enemy at critical entry points, or when the front-line has been breached and overwhelmed.

Quarantine is one of the most powerful weapons against Covid-19 and must be owned by the community, with pride. This can be at home or in designated isolation centres.

The move by law enforcement officers to turn isolation centres into penal institutions - thus demonising quarantine - sends the wrong message and will result in rejection.

When I interviewed my neighbours, none of them were willing to be quarantined because of the 'prison' stigma and neglect in the centres as exposed by the media. (A few have since changed their minds after I explained the rationale behind the isolation concept).

While the regular updates by the Ministry of Health on the disease patterns and trends appear to be useful, the true meaning of the data is only clear to people with backgrounds in epidemiology.

The reports of leaders worldwide eating humble pie is because they initially trivialised, out of lack of epidemiological appreciation, the seemingly low numbers in the disease's early phases.

The media, especially social media, are the community's mouthpiece and should best reflect understanding and adoption of the 3As. But when they start questioning the government's actions and undermine its authority, a credibility gap is generated.

It is astounding how governments have neglected social media as a platform for executing this war. It has become the voice of authority that is determining what mainstream media is consuming.

Unfortunately, the conspiracy theory wing is active, and it is bringing positive efforts in this war into disrepute.

Sensationalism of peripheral issues has taken centre stage and the disease is fighting back. Troops have been infiltrated and are stuck in the social media swamp.

Moving forward, the national and country governments should re-examine their efforts, enhance the 3As and let communities own this war that has so far been labelled a 'government effort'.

The status of the 3As must be regularly evaluated, preferably at the Nyumba Kumi level, and reports made public. The involvement of local voices like chiefs, religious leaders, teachers, students in tertiary institutions and politicians is important and they should be roped in to help without further delay.

Because disaster management committees or emergency response teams are not prepared to handle this kind of crisis, it is critical that the nation taps senior officers trained in biological warfare. They are an invaluable resource and, together with the National Intelligence Service, can design appropriate response models for all levels of society.

Punish citizens

It is critical that we make anti-Covid 19 'weapons' (personal hygiene, face masks, social distancing, self-isolation and State quarantine) available and attractive to citizens. The orders to punish errant citizens through quarantine should therefore be rescinded immediately.

The conditions in quarantine centres must be improved to make them attractive and welcoming to citizens who suspect they may be sick. The State has to be the friend of citizens who are best placed to detect and report law breakers. 

It is a tall order to rely purely on brute force in this war. The aim should be to create an alliance with citizens.

Media houses should look for sponsors and come up with programmes promoting the 3As. These would have a big impact if they run every few hours on radio stations.

Social media must be recruited as an ally. There should be teams to check for lies and counter with facts. Truth will win easily but it needs to be delivered consistently.

The briefs by the Health ministry should continue, but not every day. The citizens do not necessarily need to know how the medics are doing although important information like morale and availability of personal protection equipment can be broadcast.

Our regular Kenya Defence Forces are now an auxiliary support division, who, because of their training, are best placed to assist and support the infantry (citizens), especially in logistics, communication and other challenges.

They will help in managing the challenges the country is facing. Deploying the military as such does not imply martial law. It is just prudent reassignment.

Do not deploy the military on security issues. The regular police are still best placed for that. They only need to be sensitised that citizens are fellow combatants and should not be brutalised.

The medical services are now your special forces and they should be well armed. Just like any war adversary, Covid-19 'knows' the devastating damage to morale caused by the loss of even a single doctor. The single most important weapon in war is troop morale and readiness to deploy, gained from understanding and appreciating how critical their roles are in every skirmish, battle and phase of the war.

Citizens must own this war - mind, body and soul. And while those who err must be punished, this must not be at the expense of others. Finally, and this point cannot be reiterated strongly enough: do not turn quarantine facilities into centres for detention without trial. The infected will simply go underground.

Dr Odhiambo is a consultant orthopaedics and trauma surgeon. He served in the military for 25 years