In one day, China acted on two fronts: changed the way statistics accounted for the number of corona virus infections and fired top local officials.

The moves took place only a few hours apart on February 13. First of all, the Hubei Provincial Health Committee announced that there were 14,840 new infections, nearly 10 times the February 12 increase, due to the new method of putting clinically diagnosed cases in human statistics. viral infection, that is, includes patients diagnosed based on symptoms and CT scan images without nucleic acid test results. Of 14,840 new infections, 13,332 were clinically diagnosed.

The Chinese Communist Party then removed the party secretary of Hubei Provincial Committee Chiang Liang, replacing him with Shanghai mayor Ung Dung Dung. Chiang was the highest-ranking official who lost his chair since the outbreak.

The change in the calculation is considered a re-start step, publicizing previously unpublished figures so that the new leadership of Hubei has a new beginning, not related to the previous issues.

"First of all, they try to get rid of the backlog of people who have not been tested even if they have symptoms," said Ether Yin, from Chinese consultancy Trivium, based in Beijing. "It is very politically important to statistically correct prior to the arrival of the provincial party secretary. This will make a clear distinction between cases occurring under the management of Chiang Sieu Luong. The new provincial party committee needs a new starting line ".

The change comes in the context of the widespread suspicion that China has actually reduced the number of people infected with nCoV. The pressure increased when the public grieved and angry because Dr. Ly Van Luong, who warned early of Covid-19, died.

However, the reboot has met with skepticism on Chinese social media, where people have long speculated that the actual number of infected people is higher than official figures. Many compare this approach to that of a struggling company.

"New officials can start from the beginning, not burdened by previous failures," a person named Maiti with 200,000 followers wrote on Weibo. The post was shared widely before disappearing.

Nucleic acid testing is a way of identifying a virus in a patient's body through a genetic sequence, but information about the lack of testing equipment and unreliable test results has spread since the onset of the crisis. In Wuhan, people with symptoms like fever and coughs wait hours to be tested. People who test negative for the virus are not hospitalized.

The problem also happens outside of China. On February 12, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said test kits shipped to laboratories around the world last week were faulty.

The sudden increase in the number of infections could make the public even more angry about the government's handling of the crisis. In an update to the February 5 treatment guidelines, the National Health Commission added a list of "clinically diagnosed cases", acknowledging the lack of nucleic acid testing equipment. However, Hubei did not add that item until February 13.

Yin, meanwhile, thinks the change could help clear doubts about Chinese official data. "If the authorities are willing to announce a soaring figure of more than 10,000 overnight, this really shows they are not hiding the data," Yin said.

The new Party Secretary, Hubei Ung Dung, is a close ally of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The appointment of a trusted official in this position indicates that Xi is more responsible in the fight against the epidemic. "This is clearly Xi's decision," said Dali Yang, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago. .

Local officials often bear the brunt of a crisis. China fired more than 100 officials, including health minister and Beijing mayor during the SARS crisis (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) in 2003.

The central government has sent two senior officials to lead the anti-epidemic work in Hubei and dismiss the top two members of the Hubei Province health committee. On February 13, China Daily reported that a central official rebuked local officials for failing to provide treatment fast enough for symptomatic people.

"This is an important turning point of the campaign, the central government wants to show its determination that it will win the war and be willing to 'change blood' to do that," said Yanzhong Huang, an expert from the Association. co-relations Foreign Relations based in the US, said. "This is a testament to determination and also shows their attention to public opinion."

"I think Xi's staff changes to show that he is in control of the situation," said Sam Crane, a Chinese political lecturer at Williams University in the US.