Control corona than bicker about Centre, federal ministers to Sindh

By our correspondent

ISLAMABAD: The Minister of Maritime Affairs, Syed Ali Haider Zaidi and Federal Minister for Water and Power Faisal Vawda launched yet another tirade telling the Sindh government to keep its focus to control coronavirus rather to bicker and finding faults about the federal government's management of the health crisis.

The Minister of Maritime Affairs, Syed Ali Haider Zaidi on Saturday said that Sindh government should be focused to control coronavirus instead of criticizing the federal government's initiatives to combat COVID-19 outbreak. Talking to a private news channel, he said the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is needlessly politicising the 18th Amendment and holding long press conferences over it. He said opposition was also doing politics at the time of health emergency and criticizing the government for its policy of smart lockdown. “Opposition does not lose sleep over the large number of starving people, while the federal government is combating against coronavirus pandemic and hunger at the same time,” the minister said. Zaidi said the previous governments had destroyed the infrastructure and institutions through their reckless policies and actions.

In Karachi, the Federal Minister for Water and Power Faisal Vawda lashed out at the Sindh government for “its failure to effectively counter the coronavirus situation,” and added they have also failed to provide relief to those living in the province.

Addressing a press conference, Vawda said that the strategy and vision provided by Prime Minister Imran Khan was the only solution for Pakistan to contain the coronavirus. “The provincial government has destroyed Sindh by looting it. We cannot leave Karachi at their mercy,” a visibly charged Vawda said. He said that the coronavirus is spreading across the province due to the incompetence of the Sindh government. The federal minister said that the Sindh government must explain where has it used the funds collected by private donors and those provided by the federal government. “First they [Sindh government] claimed that it has distributed two million bags of rations and now it is saying that they have distributed 5,00,000 bags.” Vawda clarified that the federal government and the PTI are not against the imposition of lockdown. “We want a smart and effective lockdown. The ongoing month-long lockdown in the province has not yielded any results.,” he said.

“We are colleagues of Prime Minister Imran Khan, not his private servants. But the PPP ministers and leaders are serving as slaves of their supremos,” he said. “The PTI leaders are not asking extorting factory owners.” Vawda also said that he distributed food handouts among the needy families of his constituency of Baldia Town.