Postpone public meetings to stem 2nd wave of virus, Fawad urges parties

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry urged on Saturday political parties to postpone their planned public gatherings for at least three months to stem the second wave of the novel coronavirus.

In a Twitter post, he said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Covid-19 has issued new standard operating procedures (SOPs), restricting wedding receptions in terms of both number of guests and duration of the function and other events in view of the second wave of the deadly disease rearing its ugly head in the country.

Fawad said political parties should demonstrate a sense of responsibility and postpone their public gathers for a period of three months. He also urged the opposition to put off their anti-government movement until next year.

کرونا کی دوسری لہر کے پیش نظر NCOC نے نئےSOP جاری کئے ہیں اور شادیوں اور دیگر تقریبات کو محدود کرنےکا کہا ہے، میں سمجھتا ہوں سیاسی جماعتوں کو ذمہ داری کا ثبوت دینا چاہئے اور تین ماہ کیلئے جلسے جلوس ملتوی کر دیں، اپوزیشن بھی تحریک اگلے سال تک ملتوی کر دے، زندگی کااحترام کریں

— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) October 10, 2020

On October 9, the NCOC had observed that the coronavirus situation can take a turn for worse if SOPs are violated by wedding halls and rolled out a set of new guidelines for them to prevent the resurgence of cases. As per the new SOPs, only 300 guests inside halls and 500 guests for an outdoor function will be allowed. The duration of ceremonies has also been reduced to two hours.