PM personally discussing Chinese Covid vaccine certificate issue with Saudi Arabia: Rasheed

  • Says vaccination process in Pakistan is better as compared to other countries of the region as a large number of people are visiting vaccination centers after awareness
  • Minister says he has never seen such an incompetent, useless and weak opposition in this country
Updated 06 Jun, 2021

(Karachi) Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed has said that Prime Minister Imran Khan is personally looking into the matter regarding the non-acceptance of vaccination certificate of Chinese-made Covid vaccine by Saudi Arabia and some other Middle East countries.

Addressing media persons in Islamabad on Sunday, Rasheed said that the prime minister had informed the cabinet that he is discussing the issue with the leaders of the respective countries.

He said the vaccination process in Pakistan is better as compared to other countries of the region as a large number of people are visiting vaccination centers after awareness. The minister appreciated China for helping Pakistan to fight the pandemic. He said that Sinopham is the best available vaccine.

Terming the opposition as incompetent, Sheikh Rasheed pointed out that Prime Minister Imran Khan has no threat from the opposition parties. "I have never seen such an incompetent, useless and weak opposition in this country," he remarked.

He highlighted that all members of the estranged Jahangir Khan Tareen group of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf will vote in favour of Imran Khan’s budget.

He said the Interior Ministry had included PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif’s name on the Exit Control List and the 15-day deadline to appeal against the decision had passed.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia's new conditions related to the coronavirus vaccine have made life difficult for a lot of Pakistanis aspiring to travel to the kingdom as it has not included in its list of recommended vaccines, any of the ones that have been manufactured in China.

Most people in Pakistan are being vaccinated with the coronavirus vaccines manufactured by China, creating problems in traveling to the kingdom.

The kingdom recommended Pfizer, Oxford, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson's coronavirus vaccines. Passengers who do not receive the shots from the recommended vaccines undergo a mandatory quarantine period in Saudi Arabia.

The cost of the quarantine is also paid by the passengers themselves.

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