Asad Umar urges opposition to show responsibility to curb corona

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umer Wednesday urged the opposition parties to adopt pragmatic approach in the larger interest of public health and their jobs amid second wave of COVID-19.

In an interview on a private news channel, he warned the emergence of coronavirus could jeopardise the situation in the hospitals and business places. He said during the first wave of COVID-19, the world had acknowledged the policies of Pakistan regarding smart lockdown, adding the success achieved by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government in the past, may be downed if opposition played a negative role in the current situation.

Like other countries, he said, India was facing economic recession due to COVID-19 outbreak. Despite economic crunch being faced by developed countries, he said, Pakistan’s exports, remittances, foreign direct investment and industrial sector witnessed upward trend. To a question, Asad Umar said the incumbent government was going to take hard decisions in coming days. “We are planning to bring fast improvement in gas and power sector to facilitate the general public,” he said.