- A race against the clock
The National Coordination Committee (NCC) has its work cut out for it, and it is going to be hard. With seven new coronavirus cases surfacing at the Taftan border and another in Sindh, the number of affectees has risen to 29. What is happening in more developed countries with more efficient institutions and better financial resources should have opened the eyes of the administration by now. That the government waited so long before launching the NCC indicates its lack of responsiveness.
The first test for the NCC is to arrange special flights for Pakistani Iqama holders to Saudi Arabia who were told on Friday to reach the country within 72 hours. Unless this is done urgently hundreds of Pakistani workers could lose their jobs.
Pakistan is currently ill-prepared to face any rise in the number of patients, all the more so if there is a sudden spurt in their numbers. The examples from other countries indicate that this can happen any time. The way Pakistan has dealt with polio or epidemics like dengue fever underlines the shortcomings of our health system. Healt SAPM Dr Zafar Mirza is still looking for funds to purchase personal protective equipment. More primers, supportive medicines and viral transport media would be required in case of a sudden outbreak. The hospitals designated to collect the patients’ samples can hardly cope with patients on normal days and will not have enough doctors to deal with an emergency of momentous proportions.
Punjab, which has a greater population than the other three provinces combined, is likely to pose the biggest problem. Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has already announced emergency in the province without spelling out what specific measures the provincial government is taking. As things stand there is still no quarantine arrangement anywhere near the Lahore airport. Hospitals in the province have not yet acquired extra ventilators. While the Sindh Chief Minister had by Friday held the 17th meeting of the provincial coronavirus task force, a similar body was set up in Punjab only a couple of days back by its easy going Chief Minister. On Friday Mr Murad Ali Shah was passing orders to accommodate busloads of pilgrims from Taftan in the isolation centres of Sukkur. One does not know how many of the thousands of Taftan internees have headed towards Punjab.
