President Praises Courage of Gov't to Adopt Strict Measures against Coronavirus
Bratislava, March 19 (TASR) – No Slovak government has ever been appointed in such a difficult situation, President Zuzana Caputova said in an extraordinary speech on private television channel Markiza on Thursday, referring to the coronavirus spread.
Regardless of political sympathies, certainly everyone in Slovakia has the same expectation of the new cabinet, due to be headed by OLaNO’s Igor Matovic – to lead the country through these difficult days, prepare hospitals for an expected surge in the number of the infected, and draw up measures to tackle the economic and social effects of the epidemic, said Caputova.
According to the president, the leaders of both the outgoing and emerging governments understand the gravity of the situation.
Peter Pellegrini’s (Smer-SD) Cabinet is set to resign on Friday, with Matovic’s government to be appointed one day later.
The president expressed gratitude to Pellegrini and members of the central crisis management team for their personal engagement in dealing with the coronavirus spread and their communication with the public.
“Their courage to adopt strict measures in the first days of the crisis, with a significant contribution of regional and local authorities in Bratislava, have ensured that we aren’t among countries with the number of infected with the coronavirus rising in an uncontrollable way,” said the president.
She said that the public has been learning day by day to deal with the situation, as is evident from the fact that most people wear face masks, show discipline and selflessness. She had special words of praise for those standing on the front line in the fight against the new coronavirus, including doctors, nurses, police officers, fire-fighters, shop assistants and lab personnel. “It must be our priority to ensure that you’re the most protected from the risk of infection,” said Caputova.
The president encouraged the public at the end of the speech. “The present crisis is an opportunity to exert the best of us, a better version of us, and I’m proud to see how we’re dealing with that,” said Caputova, adding that she believes that the coronavirus will be defeated.
