Covid out of control in Punjab, KP due to govt incompetence: Bilawal

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday expressed concern over the spread of COVID-19 in the country and said that the pandemic has gone out of control in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa due to government incompetence.

In a statement, the PPP chairman said that the spread of the deadly pandemic could have been controlled through a timely lockdown and expressed his condolences to the families of those killed by the corona virus across the country.

Bilawal said that his Party stood by health workers across the country in this difficult time as the third wave of corona virus sweeps the country adding that mass vaccination was the only way to avoid the economic problems caused by the corona virus. “Imran Khan must understand that it is not possible to accelerate economic activities in the country without controlling the corona virus,” he added.

PPP chairman further said that Imran Khan would have to account for every single rupee of the Corona Virus Relief Fund and he should also tell the people what happened to his so-called Tiger Force that was formed to implement the SOPs of Corona virus.

He said that the third wave of COVID-19 was caused by the British variant which had spread through the country due to sheer governmental incompetence in ensuring strict surveillance, isolation and tracing at airports.

He pointed out that Imran Khan, who was suffering from COVID-19, himself chaired a five-member meeting whilst he was meant to be in quarantine.

“How can we expect a common man to take care of SOPs in a country where the Prime Minister himself does not follow government advisories and refuses to take mandate health regulations seriously?”, he questioned.

Bilawal said that due to wrong strategy of incompetent, illegitimate and selected ruler, the third wave of COVID-19 was getting out of control in the country.

The trend of voluntary action on SOPs in the country has petered out due to the PTI government's ineffective awareness campaign against coronavirus, he added.

The PPP chairman said that the world was seeing the light at the end of the pandemic by mass vaccinating its citizens against the virus but unfortunately the government is dragging its feet on ensuring the availability of the vaccine in the country. If the vaccination continues at the current rate, only 20% of the population in Pakistan will be vaccinated in more than three years, he said adding that if the government had the will, it could have procured vaccines in large quantities well in time. Sadly Imran Khan's government has only been concerned in free handouts from friendly countries, abdicating all governmental responsibility to its citizens.

Bilawal said that if China did not donate the vaccine, the process of providing doses to front line health workers in Pakistan would not have started immediately. He said that the people of Pakistan were suffering due to the complete failure of the PTI government to procure the COVID-19 vaccine in a timely manner and pointed out that a single dose of vaccine available for a few hundred rupees in the world costs thousands of rupees in Pakistan.

COVID-19 vaccine is a basic human right, which should be provided free of charge or at least at the real world market price. Bilawal further said that the statement of the Punjab Health Minister that people should take the vaccine at their own risk and the government would not be responsible for any adverse reaction, stoked fear and suspicion among the people about the vaccine.

He stated that the gederal government had so far failed to take significant steps to improve health care in the country and stressed that other provinces of Pakistan would have to take measures against the COVID-19 in the style of Sindh government. Bilawal pinpointed that 73,337 out of every 1 million people in Sindh underwent COVID-19 tests, while 40,035 out of every 1 million people in Punjab underwent COVID-19 tests.

He pledged that Sindh government despite its limited resources and powers would spare no effort to save the people of the province from COVID-19 adding that PPP would continue to expose the incompetence of the selected government at every forum for its failure in dealing with the virus.