Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi and Defence Minister Pervez Khattak have tested positive for the coronavirus, it emerged on Monday. “I have tested positive for Covid-19. May Allah have mercy on all Covid affectees,” the president said in a tweet.
He said he had only received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine so far, noting that “antibodies start developing after 2nd dose that was due in a week”.
“Please continue to be careful,” Alvi added.
Meanwhile, Sindh Governor Imran Ismail announced that Defence Minister Khattak had also been diagnosed with the virus. “Get well soon PK,” wrote Ismail, who himself contracted and recovered from the virus last year. The president and defence minister’s positive diagnosis comes a little over a week after Prime Minister Imran Khan and first lady Bushra Bibi tested positive for the coronavirus.
Following the prime minister’s positive test result, the Ministry of National Health Services had clarified that the premier was not “fully vaccinated” when he contracted the virus. “He only got the first dose merely two days ago which is too soon for ANY vaccine to become effective. Antibodies develop 2-3 weeks after the second dose of 2-dose Covid vaccines,” it said.
Later, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said it was important to understand how vaccines worked. “No vaccine works immediately after being administered. Antibodies can take at least two to three weeks to develop.”
He said that for two-dose vaccines, such as the one from Sinopharm, antibodies could take two to three weeks to develop after the second dose.
