Opposition skips parliamentary committee on coronavirus

No members from the Opposition parties attended the Parliamentary Committee on Coronavirus chaired by National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser today at the Parliament House in Islamabad.

Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Federal Minister for Information Shibli Faraz said the opposition leaders were missing in the meeting. "They attended previous four meetings and submitted suggestions to contain coronavirus spread. We implemented those important recommendations."

"Today's meeting was attended by PTI lawmakers and coalition partners. The intention behind this meeting was to reach a consensus on strategy to contain the rising spread of COVID-19 in the country."

Terming opposition parties' boycott of the meeting as 'irresponsible', Faraz said the current situation concerns the entire country in terms of economy, population and health.

"Boycotting a meeting on the country's health and economic situation is not a good decision," he added. "We expect the opposition to cooperate with the government and not politicise the pandemic."

"Our strategy to limit infections during the first wave has been commended by the world. And now that we are experiencing the second wave, we need to strategise again. This is not to score points."

He said the social activities that increase coronavirus spread should be stopped and only economic activities should be allowed to stay open. 

Ahead of the meeting, Faraz said an important issue such as the coronavirus should not be politicised. "We hope the opposition leaders will participate in the meeting and give their recommendations on dealing with the pandemic. 

Read more: Coronavirus cases in Pakistan and abroad on November 25

Covid-19 situation

A total of 3,009 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the past 24 hours, bringing the tally to 382,892. With 59 new deaths, the country's coronavirus death toll reached 7,803. So far, a total of 332,974 people have recovered from the virus while the active number of cases stands at 42,115.

With 41,583 tests conducted across Pakistan, the positivity rate has reached 7.2%.

Containment policy

Following recommendations by the NCOC, the government has made face masks mandatory in public spaces, limited large public gatherings to 300, banned indoor weddings, closed shrines, cinemas, and theatres, and instructed public and private offices to adopt work-from-home policy and 50% occupancy.

The federal government also announced that educational institutes will remain closed from November 26 to January 10. The students will study at home or get weekly homework till December 24 and winter vacations will start December 25. The schools will reopen on January 11 - which is subject to coronavirus situation then.

All examinations have been postponed except admission and recruitment tests.

Read about provincial COVID-19 strategies here.