PM Khan seeks Pak Army’s help in enforcing COVID-19 SOPs, defers nationwide lockdown

Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday chaired the meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC), held to review the prevailing coronavirus situation in the country and take a decision on imposing lockdown in cities with a high positivity ratio.

PM Imran Khan has once again deferred imposing nationwide lockdown and this time has sought help from the Pakistan Army in the enforcement of the coronavirus SOPs.

Premier urged to the masses to follow protocols else we would be facing the same situation India currently is facing.

“I am appealing to you to follow SOPs so that we don’t have to take steps that India is taking which mean imposing lockdowns. Half the problem will be solved when you wear face masks,” PM said.

He said if we strictly follow the SOPs till Eid, we may not need to take steps India is taking.

“The situation is changing very fast and we might have to impose a lockdown in days to come, which would be devastating for the economy and the poor,” he added.

“The government has expanded the capacity of hospitals during the past year. Had we not increased the facilities we might be facing a very bad situation.”

“Today, people are asking me to impose a lockdown but we are not taking such an extreme step for now and I am more concerned about the poor and daily wagers.”

PM Imran also asked Ulema to play their role in creating awareness as they did in previous Ramadan.

“Pakistan was the only country which had kept mosques open last year during Ramazan. I was proud of the way our religious scholars and imams informed the people about precautionary measures,” he said.