Response shows country's governing capacity facing up to the test

Showing that the specter that has been set free from the wild by humans is still to be sated, the number of people confirmed to be infected with the novel coronavirus rose to over 4,500 nationwide on Tuesday, up from around half that number two days ago, and 106 people are reported to have died after contracting the virus.

With the infection rate soaring rapidly, following the parabola of previous pandemics, efforts to contain the spread of the new deadly virus strain are at the most difficult stage.

That challenge is compounded by the Spring Festival holiday coming to an end on Sunday, the holiday having been extended by three days because of the pandemic－which means hundreds of millions of people will once again be on the move.