Kotlar: We Need to Define Parameters of Pandemic First (2)

Bratislava, June 20 (TASR) - Slovakia is lacking clear parameters based on which a pandemic could be identified, thinks Government Proxy for the Investigation into COVID-19 Pandemic Management Peter Kotlar. Speaking on Thursday after he made headlines with his Wednesday's statement that there has been no COVID-19 pandemic in Slovakia, Kotlar called for the drafting of precise definitions. "Currently we use a vague definition that it's a large-scale epidemic that jumps from a continent to continent [...] The only thing I care about is to define the parameters of pandemic and not just in the global scale but also regarding pandemic situation in Slovakia. Only based on that we can issue directives and bans that restrict [the freedom of] common people," claimed Kotlar. Kotlar insists that his Wednesday's statement has been misinterpreted. In his view, the COVID-19 pandemic in Slovakia met the criteria of a large-scale epidemic but not pandemic per se. "On the other hand, if it turns out that the virus was artificially created, then it wasn't a pandemic at all but an act of bio-terrorism," he said. Kotlar reiterated that he will present the conclusion of his investigation into the COVID-19 management in September and forward it also to the Prosecutor-General's Office. He added that his conclusion will have only the status of a recommendation. On Wednesday, Kotlar stated at a session of the House Health Committee that there has been no pandemic in Slovakia in terms of incidence and other measurable parameters. The statement has elicited criticism from the opposition, representatives of physicians as well as Health Minister Zuzana Dolinkova (Voice-SD), who warned that "any casting of doubt over the pandemic is a show of disrespect towards its victims and the bereaved". Newly-inaugurated President Peter Pellegrini responded by saying that next year he will commemorate the COVID-19 Pandemic Victims Memorial Day in March. mf