Imran defends stance on lockdown as virus cases top 180,000

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has once again defended his decision not to impose a complete lockdown in the country despite strong criticism, saying that Pakistan’s circumstances are different from Wuhan city and Europe.

Speaking about the havoc that the coronavirus has wreaked on Pakistan’s economy, the Prime Minister said he had not been in favour of imposing a lockdown as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had done.

Khan was addressing a ceremony for the commencement of three Ehsaas initiatives, including Ehsaas Rashan Portal and Ehsaas Langar and Panagah App and PM’s Covid Relief Fund website, in the federal capital on Monday, as the nationwide Covid-19 cases surged past 181,000 with total 3,590 deaths. He said the elderly people and those already suffering from serious diseases were the most vulnerable and if they were protected against the virus, the impact of the pandemic would be considerably reduced. “The next one month is difficult for dealing with the pandemic,” he said.

The Prime Minister spoke about the damage that had been done to the economies of developed countries like Italy and the United States when they had to impose a complete lockdown, saying long queues of people could be seen in America seeking food and charity. “So it had to happen in our country [too],” he said. “And if provinces would have asked me I would never have allowed such a lockdown. Because when you are about to impose a lockdown, you should think about the effects your decisions will have on the masses,” he added.

The Premier said provinces should not have ordered a lockdown until they thought about the effects of that decision on the daily wagers and the poor. “However, everyone panicked all at once. They were looking at Europe and Wuhan City in China, that were going through different circumstances. Our situation was totally different,” he added.

He spoke about how he was subjected to criticism for not imposing a complete lockdown across the country. “He [Modi] imposed the lockdown they [critics] wanted me to impose. I thank God that I resisted pressure and didn’t do that,” he added, noting that 34 per cent of the people in India were facing hunger and extreme poverty.