Prime Minister Imran Khan tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday, two days after receiving his first vaccine dose.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on National Health Services Dr Faisal Sultan said Imran Khan is ‘in good health’ with a mild cough and fever and was self-isolating at home, adding that the 68-year-old premier had likely been infected much before he got his first vaccine shot on Thursday. He said the prime minister isolated himself and is taking rest at home. “We are monitoring parameters of his health and at present he does not need a direct intervention,” he added.
On March 18, the prime minister got a shot of coronavirus vaccine, he said, adding as the PM turned positive two days after taking the vaccine, it generated a lot of discussion on the social media. “We need to understand how the vaccines work and how much time they take to show efficacy,” he said, adding that the vaccines does not show efficacy immediately and starts developing the immunity in two to three weeks.
The special assistant said it is possible that the Covid-19 virus was present in the body of the prime minister days before he took the vaccine shot. He said they are in contact with those people who came in close contact with the prime minister. “We will trace the people who came in contact and will ask them to isolate themselves at home. I myself will also isolate at home for few days,” he added.
He said the new wave of coronavirus has hit the country and the average rate of contraction is more than 9 percent and in some cities it is at 10 percent. He advised the people to continue following the coronavirus guidelines, keep distance from each other, wash hands and wear masks. Those persons who are more than 60 years of age should get themselves registered and vaccinated against coronavirus, he stressed.
Later in the evening, it emerged that First Lady Bushra Bibi has also tested positive for Covid-19. Syed Zulfi Bukhari, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Overseas Pakistanis, in a tweet said, “Wishing our First Lady & PM Imran Khan a speedy recovery. May Allah give them both shifa [health].”
Federal Planning Minister Asad Umar said the prime minister experienced some symptoms on the day of getting the vaccine. “Some people questioning the efficacy of vaccination since he was vaccinated Thursday evening. The symptoms take a few days before manifesting. Hence it is certain that PM had been infected PRIOR to vaccination. So please do vaccinate,” he said on Twitter.
The Ministry of National Health and Services said that the prime minister was not fully vaccinated when he contracted the virus. “He only got the 1st dose and merely 2 days ago which is too soon for any vaccine to become effective. Anti-bodies develop 2-3 weeks after the 2nd dose of the 2-dose COVID vaccine,” the ministry spokesman in a tweet said.
Fears of a third wave being more lethal came true on Saturday as Pakistan’s coronavirus positivity ratio closed in on 10%. The national tally of total active Covid-19 cases recorded 29,576 with 3,876 more people testing positive for the deadly virus and 1,446 people recovering from the disease. Forty-two corona patients died on Saturday, 40 of whom were under treatment in hospitals and two out of hospitals in their respective quarantine centres or homes, according to the NCOC. Most of the deaths occurred in the Punjab followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Out of the total 42 deaths, 15 of the deceased had died on ventilators during their treatment.
The maximum ventilators were occupied in four major areas including Multan 41 percent, Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) 46 percent, Peshawar 29 percent and Lahore 40 percent. The maximum oxygen beds were occupied in four major areas of Gujrat 75 percent, Peshawar 57 percent, ICT 44 percent and Rawalpindi 32 percent. Around 277 ventilators were occupied elsewhere in the country while no Covid-affected person was on ventilator in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Gilgit Baltistan (GB) and Balochistan.
Some 40,946 tests were conducted across the country, including 10,445 in Sindh, 15,212 in Punjab, 7,753 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 5,958 in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 362 in Balochistan, 330 in GB, and 886 in AJK. Around 579,760 people have recovered from the disease so far across Pakistan making it a significant count with over 90 percent recovery ratio of the affected patients.
Since the pandemic outbreak, a total of 623,135 cases were detected that also included the perished, recovered and under treatment COVID-19 patients so far, including AJK 11,483, Balochistan 19,306, GB 4,967, ICT 50,843, KP 78,653, Punjab 195,087 and Sindh 262,796.
