The Provincial Assembly (PA) on Friday discussed the dengue virus situation but the session ended without agreement on a solution. The assembly sat for two-and-a-half hours.
According to the minutes of the Business Advisory Committee’s meeting on Thursday, Friday was the last day of the 30th session. However, Friday’s session was sparsely attended and Speaker Rana Iqbal Khan started the session at 10:15 am, more than an hour later than the scheduled time.
Law Minister Rana Sanaullah sought the suspension of rules in order to start the dengue discussion. The motion was passed unanimously.
Parliamentary Health Secretary Dr Saeed Elahi started the discussion. He said that every year 50 million people fell prey to the virus all over the world. He said a team of experts had arrived from Sri Lanka and was working in the city and hoped their work would lend support to local health experts.
Dr Elahi said the government had provided more beds in all public sector hospitals and OPDs were open round the clock. Private laboratories, he said, have established 10 centres in the city to provide quick dengue tests. He added that death rate from the virus was between 1 and 12 per cent across the world but in Pakistan it was less than one per cent. He said so far 9 people had died in the city due to dengue.
PPP’s Major (retd) Abdul Rehman Rana said the government should have moved promptly to control the disease following the lessons of other affected countries that have controlled and eradicated it.
He suggested that the government focus on addressing the public’s fear. He said media coverage should not disturb the patients.
He said the government needed to check the prices of mosquito nets and anti-mosquito oils.
He suggested that the government form a permanent dengue task force.
PML-Q’s Dr Samia Amjad applauded the government’s efforts to curb the virus.
PML-N’s Dr Ashraf Chohan said that it was not right to claim that dengue was not a fatal or dangerous disease. He said that there was no treatment for the virus and suggested that the government call back all sanitary inspectors who were on leave. He also suggested that the government establish a separate hospital for dengue patients.
PPP’s Deputy Parliamentary Leader Shaukat Mehmood Basra said the government had ignored the experts who had been warning about a dengue outbreak.
He said it was important that the house was discussing the issue but regretted that their was no health minister to answer questions. He said that the Health Department officials were minting money while Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was busy with other affairs.
He said that Sharif should make the Leader of Opposition Raja Riaz, Chaudhry Zaheeruddin and other opposition members part of his team to fight dengue.
He demanded that the chief justice take take suo motu notice against those involved in purchasing substandard insecticides for the anti-mosquito campaign.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 17th, 2011.
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