Nation will have to learn to live with virus: PM Imran

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said the nation will have to learn to live with coronavirus for some time as a cure is not coming anytime soon.

While expressing his views on the situation, the prime minister said medical staff around the world is fighting against the disease like their peers in Pakistan. He said scientists and researchers worldwide are of the view that a vaccine for coronavirus may take more time to develop.

PM Imran Khan said the government has to watch corona disease, as well as its impacts on wider society, adding that the government, despite its limited resources, gave a stimulus package of $8 billion to its people.

Imran Khan said situation of lockdown in Pakistan is different than advanced countries, as here the government has to save the people against starvation as well. He said cash transfers to people who have become unemployed due to coronavirus will be made from next Monday from the Prime Minister’s Fund for COVID-19 relief.

He said according to a survey 25 million people were daily wage earners in 2017 and 2018 in Pakistan. He said that 150 million people have been directly or indirectly affected by lockdown in the country

The prime minister warned that cases of coronavirus will increase in Pakistan in the coming days, but they also have to protect our people from hunger. He said the number of deaths due to coronavirus in Pakistan is less than the projections but we have to take maximum precautionary measures to not burden out limited medical resources.

He said the government is opening the businesses to restart economic activity but people must follow the SOPs given by the government, including social distancing and hand washing.

PM Imran Khan said Corona Relief Tiger Force will help provide rations to people as well as sensitize them. He said closure of public transport is hurting the poor people and asked provinces to reconsider their decision for facilitation of people.

Minister for Economic Affairs Hammad Azhar said in first phase of lockdown pharmaceutical and essential items shops were allowed to open, while in the second phase construction industry was opened so that people can work and earn their wages.

Hammad Azhar said in third phase vehicle and motorcycle manufacturing companies have been allowed to reopen from Monday next with strict SOPs. He said the decision to open large shopping malls has been left to provinces.

Speaking on the occasion, Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza said 100,000 health workers including doctors, nurses, and paramedics will be trained for the correct use of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE). He said the first phase of this training will be completed in four weeks, while another 5000 intensive care unit workers will be trained to handle corona patients.

Dr Mirza said it is a great achievement for the country that a Pakistani pharmaceutical company has concluded its voluntary licensing agreement with US pharmaceutical company Gilead for the manufacture and sale of Remdesivir. This agreement allows Pakistan to export the medicine to 127 countries.

Special assistant on Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar said category four of Ehsaas Emergency Cash program will start from Monday and a new Category-IV has been added for the people who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19. She said under this category around 34,000 applications have been received so far.

She said the final decision for the applicants who have registered themselves for Ehsaas Emergency Cash will be made on Monday. The successful applicants will get their verifications via short message service on Monday.

Special Assistant on National Security Division Moeed Yousaf said more than 23,000 stranded Pakistanis in different countries has been brought back so far. He said keeping in view the best international practices, 48-hour quarantine condition has been removed and now the capacity to bring back Pakistani citizens has increased.

He said that 11 to 12 thousand people will be brought back every week on the directives of the prime minister, adding that their top priority is to help stranded poor workers and labourers in Gulf states.