ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday warned of an expected surge in coronavirus cases and fatalities, as he appealed to members of the public to exercise caution and social distancing to slow the infection rate.
The warning comes as Pakistan’s known COVID-19 figures near 72,500 infection cases and over 1,500 related deaths.
“The coronavirus isn’t going anywhere until a vaccine for it is discovered. We will have to live with it at least for this year,” the prime minister said in a televised address to the nation after a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) in Islamabad.
The NCC is a federal-level body, currently tasked with preparing the country’s COVID-19 strategy. The prime minister chairs its meetings with representatives of Pakistan’s top military and civilian leadership, including the chief ministers of all four provinces.
“The virus will spread, unfortunately, and more deaths will be recorded,” the prime minister said as he requested that the public “act responsibly to slow down the virus spread.”
The 220 million nation’s coronavirus figures have sharply increased since the second week of May, when the government eased restrictions imposed on March 23 to contain the outbreak, despite calls from experts and health workers urging the authorities to reimpose a strict lockdown to flatten the curve.
“We have to make a tough choice between the lockdown and keep the economy running especially for the underprivileged and daily-wagers,” the prime minister said, adding the government was trying to strike a balance between economic activity and anti-virus measures, as the lockdown had impacted the livelihoods of some 120 million to 150 million people.
While the government has introduced an $8 billion relief package to support the worst affected sectors of the society, the prime minister said the country’s cash-starved economy can no longer support the poor.
He said Pakistan’s tax collection, exports, foreign remittances and investment have been hit hard by the pandemic.
“Our tax collection has recorded a reduction of 30 percent while remittances will also drop,” he said, “We are treading a difficult path.”
Addressing health care practitioners, Khan said the government was trying to initiate measures to lessen the burden borne by them due to COVID-19.