PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday said the 21-day lockdown to combat the spread of COVID-19 would lead to the suffering of the already comatose economy, but said his focus now was to save lives and turn to the economy later.
Addressing the nation on day one of the three-week long lockdown, Mnangagwa said the decision was not easy, but was necessary to save lives.
Mnangagwa, who was flanked by members of the inter-ministerial taskforce on COVID-19 that include Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, Vice-President Kembo Mohadi, Defence minister Oppah Muchinguri, Obadiah Moyo (Health) and Monica Mutsvangwa (Information), said he was certain Zimbabwe would come out of the pandemic stronger.
“This was not an easy decision to make. But this is the right decision. Our economy will survive. Our economy will recover, but right now, nothing is more dear to me, nothing is more sacrosanct than the lives of the people of Zimbabwe. We can emerge from this a strong, healthy nation,” Mnangagwa said.
However, he did not give updates on the number of tests done so far.
“In life, we all must face problems and challenges which are beyond our making that have been forced upon us.
