Vaccine shortage proof of govt’s incompetence: Shehbaz

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) President and National Assembly Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif has expressed grave concern and alarm over the unavailability of COVID-19 vaccine in the country.

In a statement, issued here on Sunday, Shehbaz said the government should make arrangements for immediate supply of corona vaccine and should not play with the lives of people.

He said the government should chalk out plan by keeping in mind the population of Pakistan in this regard.

“The government must change its shallow-minded approach of ordering a few million doses and working with the vaccine supplies given to Pakistan as charity. The unavailability of the corona vaccine is another proof of the government's criminal negligence and incompetence”, Shehbaz said.

He said the opposition has repeatedly warned that failure to ensure timely vaccinations will not protect the lives of the people from the deadly virus. The government is erring and delaying the supply of vaccines the same way it handled the supply of LNG which led to massive losses, but this time round it is a matter of life and death of Pakistanis, he stressed.

The opportunists, in this corrupt government that bagged billions in illegal profit in sugar and flour crisis, were trying to seize this opportunity as well to make money at the cost lives, he pointed out. It is unfortunate that the government is showing the most serious display of criminal negligence in the matter of people's lives, he said.

Shehbaz said the serious corruption allegations over the Rs1,200 billion corona relief package have already complicated the situation. Under this PTI government, theft of public funds is rampant and the provision of services to the public is zero, he lambasted.

The people of Pakistan are being punished for government theft, incompetence and mismanagement which is regrettable and reprehensible, he concluded.