Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor highlighted containing the spread of the coronavirus as the top priority for the special administrative region government to regain the trust of the people of Hong Kong when she gave a speech at the CCTV Finance Forum on Tuesday. On the same day, the city reported another 53 COVID-19 cases, as the fourth wave of the outbreak showed no sign of abating despite decisive measures taken by the authorities since late November. The situation, therefore, calls for an urgent universal compulsory nucleic acid testing of the novel coronavirus, which will be a crucial means to achieve Lam's goal.

The crucial first step to flatten the curve lies in mass compulsory testing, rather than a massive vaccination program. Such quick and tangible results will certainly help rebuild people's confidence in government.

The government has stepped up testing when possible clusters emerge, but its resolution falls short when it comes to launching mandatory testing for all Hong Kong residents, if it intends to do it at all.

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The chief executive previously said that universal compulsory community testing was "unrealistic" in Hong Kong because local residents are less cooperative in following government instructions than their mainland counterparts, whose readiness to get tested has greatly helped curb the contagion. Lam's observation might have been valid at the time it was made, but that might no longer be the case. Knowing how the mainland has kept COVID-19 under control for months, setting the stage for it to become the only major economy to achieve positive growth, more and more Hong Kong residents are convinced the SAR must do the same for a swift and full-fledged recovery.

Although the mainland is not immune from sporadic spikes in local or imported cases from time to time, such isolated incidents are all contained through extensive contact-tracing and quarantine measures. A few mainland cities also saw a slight rise in positive results, both imported and local, among certain groups of individuals recently, but the isolated incidences have all been contained through extensive contact-tracing and quarantine measures, often in a matter of hours instead of days. The simple phone-based "health code" app has been a big boost for effective contact tracing while facilitating easier movement. This explains why mainland people now can travel and work more freely than people in the "free world".

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While the government's success in securing enough vaccines for everyone has kindled hope for citywide inoculation in six months, many experts around the world have cautioned that there is no guarantee the available vaccines will remain effective after a year. That means the crucial first step to flatten the curve lies in mass compulsory testing, rather than a massive vaccination program. Such quick and tangible results will certainly help rebuild people's confidence in government.