ANALYSIS - Merkel under fire for failed coronavirus response

The author is a Berlin-based journalist covering German politics.

BERLIN

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her government have failed miserably in managing the coronavirus crisis.

This assessment is gaining momentum not only among politicians across the political spectrum but also health experts.

The head of the parliamentary faction of the opposition Left party, Amira Mohamed Ali, lashed out at Merkel’s controversial coronavirus strategy, calling it “a pile of rubble.”

"If your federal government had not failed so miserably with the vaccine procurement and testing strategy, then this third wave could have been decisively mitigated, if not even avoided," the leftist parliamentarian said.

Merkel did not manage to give hope and perspective, she said, "and the result is that more and more people are losing confidence in politics."

Mohamed Ali’s criticism of Merkel was shared by other opposition parties, including the Greens and the Free Democratic Party (FDP), whose leader Christian Lindner called for a “new start in the pandemic policy.”

Doctors fume at government response

That notwithstanding, medical experts have been leading the attack on Merkel’s woeful coronavirus crisis management, openly wondering whether this strategy can ultimately halt the spread of the deadly virus.

“I am shocked about the crisis management of the federal government,” said Berlin-based doctor Stefan Hoehne.

“We are still lacking FFP3 protective masks and safety goggles,” he added.

The negligent and sometimes chaotic behavior of Merkel’s coalition government in the current crisis is seen by many as unprecedentedly amateurish in the history of post-World War II Germany.

This is confirmed by the German government’s unprofessional procurement of the vaccine and when it comes to the number of vaccine doses administered so far compared to other countries.

Although the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was first developed in Germany, the country’s sluggish vaccination program lags far behind the UK and US, and other developed countries.

Commercial life has come to a standstill

And it’s not only that. Public life in Germany is practically non-existent as movie theaters, concert organizers, travel agencies, fitness studios, and the entire catering industry have been hibernating for months.

Apart from grocery chains and beverage markets, the entire retail trade, countless commercial and handicraft businesses, pubs, restaurants, cafes, and leisure facilities have been paralyzed as they were forced to close.

The retail association Handelsverband Deutschland (HDE) expects the permanent closure of 50,000 stores and a quarter of a million unemployed in its area alone. The dimensions of the already incurred and further economic damage cannot even be estimated yet.

It is clear that generations to come will have to cope with it. However, the Merkel government’s failed management has not only consequences for industry, business, and commerce. The existence of three out of four restaurants is in jeopardy if things continue as they are now, according to experts. Some small and inner cities could turn into ghost towns in the long run.

Corona policies have dramatic social impact

At least as bad, if not worse, are the effects of the inflexible coronavirus regulations imposed by the government that has had a dramatic psychological and physical impact on the everyday lives of people.

Sick people and those in need of care, especially the elderly, lack the proximity of their family members, friends, and acquaintances.

The privatization of the German health sector started under then-chancellor Helmut Kohl has favored the breeding ground for the rapid spread of the virus: a shortage everywhere, among nursing and aid workers, accompanied by inadequate medical care.

This crisis has also highlighted the government’s failed educational policies to step up remote learning in the country.

The most vulnerable section of society in this current misery are children as Germany is notorious for lagging behind in digitalization and the coronavirus has aggravated this situation as schools do not have the necessary tools -- like laptops -- for e-learning.

Moreover, many schools also still lack high-performing internet connections, according to IT experts.

Corona crisis affects mostly poor children

This crisis has especially affected poor children in Germany as every fifth child in the country is growing up in poverty, according to a study by the Bertelsmann Foundation.

The coronavirus pandemic and subsequent inadequate government action are accelerating inequality between rich and poor, triggering new social tensions.

A lack of education leads to more social inequality in Germany. Where there is a lack of equal opportunities in education, poverty is inevitable.

Parents or single parents who find it difficult to finance their livelihoods usually have no tools or communication tools that enable their children to learn in the virtual world.

While many Germans hope that the nationwide corona vaccination and testing program can be accelerated to counter the lethal virus, many fear that various forms of other coronavirus mutations could restrict public life for years to come.

The chancellor’s zigzag course on fighting the disease surely did not help to dispel people’s fears about their country gripped by the virus for an unforeseeable future.

“Merkel did a great job in fighting the 2008 financial crisis and the 2015 refugee crisis, but she failed miserably in combating corona,” said a leading German health expert, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“More than 80,000 people have died in Germany as a result of COVID-19 because the government did not have a clear corona strategy,” he added.

*Opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Anadolu Agency.