In his address on Thursday night, the Prime Minister reached out to all of India to respond to the public health emergency posed by the Coronavirus pandemic, with social solidarity, unifying the country to mount a determined and disciplined response. Recognising that the nation was in the grip of anxiety and uncertainty, amidst unprecedented global panic, he set out to calm fears and catalyse citizen engagement in responding with collective resolve to a public health emergency.
His address joins the company of some other distinguished global leaders who rose above the rest to communicate with their people, with clarity and composure, on a complex crisis time response to a common threat. The talks of Singapore’s Prime Minister, South Korea’s Foreign Minister, the German Chancellor, and Canada’s Prime Minister, have gone viral on social media as examples of excellent, empathetic and informative public messaging, in contrast to the efforts of the American President and British Prime Minister, which have failed to connect, communicate or clarify.