Imran foresees swift end to coronavirus crisis

Ag Agencies

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has termed Pakistan’s virus situation “far better” than other countries, predicting the nation would soon overcome the coronavirus challenge and be one of the countries that get out of the crisis speedily.

Speaking at a televised media briefing here on Thursday, after chairing a meeting focused on Covid-19, the Prime Minister said things in the wake of the pandemic are “not as bad as feared”, adding: “If we compare Pakistan with other countries, the situation is far better.”

His remarks came as the country’s confirmed Covid-19 cases exceeded 16,200 with 361 deaths, and Balochistan warned it would institute a tougher lockdown amid burgeoning cases in the province. The Prime Minister was flanked by Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar, Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar, Special Assistant to the PM on Social Safety and Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar, Special Assistant to the PM on Health Dr Zafar Mirza and the PM’s Focal Person on Covid-19 Dr Faisal Sultan.

“What we were expecting was that till now hospitals — especially ICUs (intensive care units) — would have been filled with coronavirus patients, in addition to the shortage of ventilators,” Khan said. “But thank God, the situation is far better.”

The Prime Minister said the government’s “effective measures” — the decision of going for a lockdown, closure of schools and colleges, restrictions on gatherings after 26 coronavirus positive cases were found, as well as the cooperation of the masses were behind the “not-so-bad situation”.

He mentioned his telephonic conversations with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and said the discussions focused on the situation arising out of the outbreak.

Referring to his conversation with Rouhani, Khan said Iran, which was badly hit by Covid-19, had decided to ease restrictions and open some industries, including construction and small businesses to check the economic difficulties faced by its people.

He said Egypt, which also faced economic hardships like Pakistan, was already following the practice of a partial lockdown with restrictions on crowded activities. He said Egypt had also decided to further ease the restrictions for the relief of poor.

He also spoke about a new relief fund for the unemployed, where the government would contribute four rupees for every one rupee donated to it, Geo News reported. “For every rupee donated, the government will match it with Rs4 in the fund,” the Premier said, adding that the ‘Corona Relief Tigers Force’ had been informed to set up a desk in each union council to check who has been unemployed.

In a talk at an event organised by the Ministry of Science and Technology earlier in the day, Khan characterised strict lockdowns as a product of class divisions, blaming the country’s “elite” for the decision to impose curbs. “If the virus had only affected the poor, there would never have been a rush to impose lockdowns,” Khan said. Khan’s dithering on a strict nationwide lockdown over economic concerns has resulted in provinces going their own way, with each instituting curbs of varying intensity.

The Prime Minister said the government did not opt for a complete lockdown as it would “badly hit the poor and down-trodden segments of society”, adding that a country where there was an “ocean of the poor and a few rich” could not make progress.

He said had the “elites of the country, including the officers” gone to public hospitals for their treatment instead of going abroad on public money, public hospitals and health infrastructure would have been improved to a great extent.