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Friday July 11, 2025

We have to learn to live with the virus: Imran

By News Desk
May 16, 2020

Ag Agencies

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has said the country has to “learn to live with the coronavirus” defying warnings from healthcare practitioners and criticism from the opposition over the government’s decision to ease the nationwide lockdown.

“We have to accept that we have to live with the coronavirus at least until the end of this year,” the Prime Minister said during a televised media briefing on Friday about the latest situation of Covid-19 in the country. “And it is our responsibility to take precautionary measures and protect ourselves [from this disease],” he added.

The Prime Minister’s statement came a week after his decision to ease the nationwide lockdown, while the country’s coronavirus cases maintained its upward trajectory, with total cases as of this report now exceeding 38,000 with 822 deaths.

Minister for Planning Asad Umar, Minister for Education Shafqat Mehmood, PM’s Focal Person on Covid-19 Dr Faisal Sultan, Special Assistant to the PM on Health Dr Zafar Mirza, Special Assistant to the PM on Social Safety and Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar and Special Assistant to the PM on National Security Moeed Yusuf were also present.

In making his case, the Premier said he was addressing the healthcare community, as he was aware of their alarm at the government’s decision to ease curbs. “I assure you my government fully realises the sort of pressures you must face, [given your profession and especially] with regard to your families and children,” Khan said.

However, he said it is important for the medical community to understand how a country tackles a problem of this magnitude, the choices it has to make, and the repercussions the decisions have on the whole society.

Justifying his stance, the Prime Minister said if he had any assurances that Covid-19 was ending “in two or three months”, he would have opted for a complete lockdown for three months and would have made arrangements to reach out to the poor and deserving with food essentials at their doorsteps.

He said the rationale behind a lockdown was to prevent the spread of the virus as it is highly contagious. “But will the virus end with a lockdown?” he asked. The Premier then spoke of countries where a resurgence of the virus was being witnessed, such as China, South Korea, Singapore, and Germany. “The experts and scientists from across the world have not found any treatment of the coronavirus, and the vaccine will also not be available this year,” Khan said.

The Premier said now 150 million people have become affected by the lockdown, and the government was left with no choice but to reopen the country. “We have things under control,” insisted the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister appealed to the whole nation to follow the SOPs laid out by the government for the safety of people. “If we see a spike in cases in certain areas, those areas will have to be put under lockdown again,” he stressed, urging business and factory owners to act responsibly.

“In living with the virus, a great responsibility lies on the shoulders of the people [...] so we can ensure it does not spread and we can also keep our economy running.”

Khan also spoke about reopening public transport. He said due to reservations “of some”, transport had not been reopened. “So I request everyone to open public transport. America has not shut it, Europe hasn’t. Why have we?”

When Asad Umar spoke, he sought to downplay the fact that people were not following SOPs in public, arguing that people were maintain social distancing protocols in public. He also revealed that the health ministry had now it mandatory for people to wear masks in crowded places.

Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa followed the Prime Minister’s call, with respective provincial authorities saying they would resume public transport. Sindh’s transport minister Awais Qadir Shah, however, refused to resume public transport, asking the Prime Minister if he wants Pakistan “to become like Italy”.