Parliamentary consultation essential to defeat COVID-19

• Parliamentary representatives can create awareness regarding this disease in their respective constituencies and there is a need to keep balance between health issues and the economic challenges.
• 58,000 tests had been conducted out of which 3,721 had been diagnosed positive out of which 2,100 belonged to Tableeghi Jamaat, Zayreen and jail inmates.
• Dr Sania Nishter said lockdown strategy needed to be revisited in coming days since the country’s economy cannot bear perpetual lockdown.

ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser Monday urged upon all the members of the political parties to work together for a broad-based strategy to fight COVID-19.

“Parliamentary representatives can create awareness regarding this disease in their respective constituencies and there is a need to keep balance between health issues and the economic challenges faced by the common people,” he said.

He expressed these views while presiding over Parliamentary Committee on Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) at the Parliament House.

The speaker said only representatives of the common people were capable to evolve broad based strategy. He stressed the need for a unanimous narrative to counter the coronavirus pandemic.

He also stressed the need for a follow-up mechanism in order to promptly get the recommendations of the committee implemented.

He, therefore, constituted a sub-committee headed by Senator Syed Shibli Faraz with Ali Muhammad Khan, Senator Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Shahida Akthar Ali and Dr Nosheen Hamid, Parliamentary Secretary for Health as its members to follow-up on the recommendations of the committee.

Minister for Health Punjab Dr Yasmin Rashid briefed the committee about the number of coronavirus tests conducted, patients found positive, medical facilities available in the hospitals and isolation and quarantine centers established in Punjab.

She apprised that till date 58,000 tests had been conducted out of which 3,721 had been diagnosed positive out of which 2,100 belonged to Tableeghi Jamaat, Zayreen and jail inmates.

She informed that an aggressive strategy had been formulated to carry out corona tests in Lahore being the epicenter to access the exact quantum of people affected by the virus.

She said the quarantine and isolation facilities had been intensified in different parts of the provinces besides enhancing the present testing capacity of 3,000 per day to 21,000 tests per day.

Special Assistants to the Prime Minister on Health and Social Safety Dr Zafar Mirza and Dr Sania Nishter apprised the committee about the latest update about their respective departments.

Dr Mirza apprised the committee that need-based assessment was underway to provide personal protective equipments (PPEs) to all health professionals.

He informed that standard operating procedures (SOPs) had been revised in recent meeting of the National Command and Operations Committee (NCOC) and now every health professional would be provided Level-1 PPEs and massive tracking, testing and quarantine strategy would be implemented in the coming days.

Dr Sania Nishter said lockdown strategy needed to be revisited in coming days since the country’s economy cannot bear perpetual lockdown.

She informed the committee about the cash disbursement to the destitute under PM’s Emergency Cash Assistance Programme.

Speaker Asad Qaiser while concluding the meeting appreciated the efforts of provincial governments especially of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan as health minster Punjab apprised the house that Punjab government had increased its capacity for testing, treating and quarantine facility for the affected patients.

He informed that a functional committee on corona affected people under the minister of state for SAFRON was discussing the issue and all the relevant departments were on board.

He assured that all the stranded members of Tableeghi Jamat would be sent to their homes before Ramazan.

He thanked the members of the committee for their valuable input and decided to convene next meeting of the parliamentary committee on next Monday.