Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry said on Tuesday that scientists and virology experts should brief the lawmakers before the parliament sessions, calling the meetings "a waste of time".
The minister, in a tweet, said that he has written a letter to the Deputy Speaker in the National Assembly Qasim Suri in this regard, as majority of the opposition parties are talking politics instead of speaking on COVID-19.
In his letter, the minister said he mentioned that the speeches during the assembly sessions are a mere "waste of time" as the same statements can be made during press conferences.
Chaudhry said that if the lawmakers are brought together then they should be briefed by medical experts regarding the coronavirus.
He added that the parliamentarians should be told how the virus is progressing, and what are the symptoms and treatment discovered so far.
He mentioned that five Pakistani universities have researched on the structure of the coronavirus.
Chaudhry said that there was no use of the sessions in which the politicians only hurl accusations at each other.
A day ago, in a tweet, he said that he has taken the decision after some National Assembly members and staff tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
"I have decided not to attend today's assembly session after several members and staff tested positive for COVID-19. From day one, I have been talking about the session on the video link," he added.
"Under pressure from the opposition, the parliamentary committee made an unwise decision and unnecessarily endangered the country's political leadership", the federal minister stated.
Earlier, Fawad Chaudhry supported a strict lockdown in high-risk areas of the country due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
"The whole world is focusing on prevention right now. We should also follow a stricter lockdown to prevent the virus to spread," he asserted.
A session of the Senate was held on Tuesday to discuss the coronavirus pandemic.
The session was summoned upon the opposition's requisition.
During the session, the opposition leaders lambasted the top leadership, including the prime minister, for not formulating a concrete policy during the coronavirus crisis.
On Monday, a session of the National Assembly was held, where the top opposition leaders, including PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto, questioned the government response to the COVID-19 situation.
During both the in-person sessions, the lawmakers lashed out over the continued absence of the prime minister before the two Houses of the parliament.
The parliamentarians urged the prime minister to give a statement regarding the government's response and policy on the current situation.
In Pakistan, currently the pandemic has infected more than 3,000 people and claimed above 700 lives.
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