‘Sindh govt must stop criticism, stand united to fight coronavirus’ : Ali Zaidi

ISLAMABAD, Apr 17 (APP):Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Ali Zaidi Friday while declaring novel coronavirus a serious global challenge said that Sindh government should stop criticism and stand united with federal government in this critical times.

Talking to a private news channel , Minister said it would be better if the provincial, federal governments and other political parties were on the same page to deal with this emergency COVID-19 pandemic situation.

Federal government and national institutions were trying their utmost to tackle this challenge of coronavirus and save many lives even with limited resources, he mentioned.

The Sindh government needs to take more solid and practical steps to save precious lives of coronavirus patients and save the starving families of jobless daily-wage earners in the province, he urged.

He further said those ruling in the Sindh government were yet to realize the importance of protecting human lives and the harsh measure of lockdown was taken only to achieve that.

“To fight for this common enemy, we need to shut down politics for some period of time,” Zaidi said, adding that the opposition should avoid doing politics on it.

“The nation needs unity to overcome the Corona Pandemic, adding, I appreciate the role of doctors, media, lawyers and welfare organizations for playing key role in the battle against coronavirus.

Replying a Question, Zaidi said that after the 18th Amendment, the health sector had been devolved to the provinces and now it was the responsibility of provincial governments to deal with it.

“But despite that, the federal government has been arranging testing kits, providing financial assistance and taking other serious steps for the protection of common people”, he added.

The minister urged the PPP-led government to focus on COVID-19 patients in interior Sindh instead of criticizing federal government.

He urged the citizens to avoid gatherings, hand shaking, wash hands with soaps frequently, and use masks while traveling.