BNP on Friday alleged that the country has been witnessing a high mortality rate from the Covid-19 pandemic for lack of proper treatment and adequate oxygen supply in the hospitals at the district and upazila levels.

“Coronavirus-hit different districts and upazilas have become death valleys for lack of proper treatment. There is no ICU, necessary oxygen supply and medicine there,” said BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

He came up with the allegation while talking to reporters after placing wreaths at BNP founder Ziaur Rahman’s grave together with the leaders of Doctors Association of Bangladesh (DAB), marking its 32nd founding anniversary.

Rizvi said the government got enough time to improve the healthcare facilities in the district and upazila hospitals to tackle the Covid pandemic, but it did not do that.

“Why is oxygen not supplied to hospitals at the district level? Why there is no necessary medicine there? The reason is the government’s main focus is on indulging in corruption instead of saving the lives of people,” he observed.

The BNP leader also accused the government of staging dramas over the Covid vaccine procurement and mass vaccination programme.

He said the government first announced to intensify mass vaccination drive by providing one crore doses of vaccine within seven says, but they are now repeatedly changing their decisions.

Rizvi also alleged that some ruling party leaders made huge money through corruption in the process of procuring vaccines.

He also said a syndicate is interfering in the procurement of everything relating to the coronavirus. “The entire health system has been destroyed through corruption and irregularities. There have been huge discussions about the corruption in the health sector and every process of procurement, but the government is not taking any action in this regard.”

Meanwhile, BNP standing committee member Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku alleged that the government is not sincere in eradicating coronavirus from the country.

“This government does not want to eliminate corona from the country. The government would have taken more initiatives had it wanted to get rid of the virus. They think it matters little if 4-5 lakh people out of 18 crore die of corona,” he said.

Tuku made the remarks while virtually inaugurating BNP’s Covid-19 help centre in Gazipur District.

He said their party leaders and activists across the country are standing by people to assuage their sufferings induced by the Covid pandemic.