Very few societies pay close attention to cabinet meetings and their resolutions as Rwandans do. Many do not even know when they meet or care much about what they decide. But Rwandans, even the most ordinary or in the remotest parts of the country, do. In the past, the attention was about who had been appointed to what position (or dropped) and decisions about areas close to their daily lives – agriculture, health, education, and so on. Since the arrival of Covid-19, nearly a year and a half ago, the focus has shifted. Now the interest is on what prevention measures will be announced, whether they will be tightened or relaxed. And so it was like that this past weekend. This time there was a little more anxiety because cabinet met on Saturday, which seemed to indicate that tougher measures were being considered. In the event, there were some restrictions but not as drastic as had been feared. There was reason to be apprehensive. Cases of Covid-19 infections were on the rise again after a period of continuous decline. Neighbouring countries are experiencing a big wave of new cases that have overwhelmed their health systems. And more variants of the virus are being reported around the world. Something had to be done to bring the numbers under control again. Ordinary Rwandans knew this even if they did not do much to stop the numbers from rising. Which goes to show how keenly they watch Covid-19 trends. We were doing well and people were beginning to think life was returning to normal and began to lower their guard. They became careless about wearing masks. They forgot about washing hands and disregarded social distancing. They returned to hugging. Of course, we wish it was like it had always been. This eagerness to return to normal life is understandable. Restrictions of any sort, even when necessary, are usually resented. Living under threat of any kind for any length of time takes its toll on nerves and patience. It is a normal human reaction when some improvement occurs to think that danger has passed and vigilance is no longer necessary. But desire and reality do not always neatly converge. Very often they actually diverge. And so it is important to remind that danger still lurks. But this sort of laxity, understandable as it might be, also reflects other, more dangerous, attitudes regarding relationship with authority. One has to do with respect for rules and obedience to authority. This may be an ingrained quality among Rwandans, at least that’s the popular view, but it is only partially true. People do not see the rules as their own, but as something imposed from the outside. They may obey them but not because they think it is the right thing to do but because they are enforced by the authority with the threat of sanctions. Both rules and sanctions are considered a burden, not a governance requirement or necessary corrective measures. We often hear people say: we are doing this because that’s what government wants, or because the authorities have directed so. So we follow regulations because they are government directives. If no one is looking, we will gladly break them and feel we have done nothing wrong. Sometimes we even think we are heroes. This attitude reflects the general understanding of discipline as simply obedience to rules and authority rather than part of our moral and intellectual responsibility. We see instances of this attitude on the roads every day. There are cameras placed at intervals to help regulate speed. Many motorists reduce speed when approaching the cameras, but once they have passed, accelerate again. In other words, when the cameras are not ‘looking’ it’s alright to speed up. They are a nuisance, an inconvenience, not something meant to protect lives. In the case of covid-19, people seem more concerned about avoiding sanctions than the possibility of contracting the disease. They dread the lockdown more than they fear what leads to it. Of course, that is also a serious issue. But the danger to life is the greater problem. Clearly something must be done to change some of these attitudes. A way has to be found to show that covid-19 poses real danger to life beyond the inconveniences of not being able to go to work as usual or to one’s favourite watering hole, or to party and celebrate some event or other. Communication about covid-19 has largely been effective and consistent. But perhaps an element could be added to make people more responsible for their own safety but also for collective prevention. In the long term, we should teach that obedience and respect for rules and authority must not be built on fear or threat of punishment, but on understanding the value of doing so and be part of morality and sense of responsibility. The views expressed in this article are of the writer.
