KARACHI: President Asif Ali Zardari’s personal physician has confirmed that he has tested positive for coronavirus, the presidency said on Wednesday, adding that a team of medical experts is looking after him and that his health is “improving.”

Zardari was brought to a private hospital in Karachi from Sindh’s Nawabshah city on Tuesday after he complained about suffering from fever and breathing problems, local media outlets reported.

“President Asif Ali Zardari’s personal physician Dr. Asim Hussain has said that after various tests, it has been confirmed that the president is suffering from coron[avirus] and has been advised to remain in isolation at this time,” the media wing of the presidency said in a statement. 

“He [Dr. Hussain] said that a team of experts is taking care of him and the president’s condition is improving,” it added. 

Zardari is also the co-chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a key member of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition government. The PPP confirmed the development in a post on social media platform X. 

Sindh minister and senior PPP leader Sharjeel Inam Memon earlier rejected reports that the president was being shifted to Dubai for treatment, clarifying that his health is improving and that he will be fine “soon.”

In a statement released from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Tuesday, Sharif contacted Zardari to inquire about his health and pray for the president’s speedy recovery.

“The entire nation’s prayers are with you,” Sharif was quoted as saying by the PMO.

Zardari, the widower of Pakistan’s slain first woman prime minister Benazir Bhutto, was appointed president for a second term in March last year. He previously served on the same post from 2008-2013.

A landowner from Sindh, Zardari rose to prominence after his marriage to Bhutto in 1987. He was widely criticized for corruption scandals that led to the collapse of Bhutto’s government in 1990.