Cvijanović: No new cases in RS, but we must maintain military discipline

BANJA LUKA, (Patria) - There are no new coronavirus infections in the Republic of Srpska, and so far 90 cases have been confirmed. Regardless of the current situation, RS President Željka Cvijanović sent a message to citizens to continue respecting the measures and stay at home to protect themselves and their loved ones.

She said that they can only fight the virus with military discipline. The first case of coronavirus in BiH was confirmed on March 5.

"We must bear in mind that the number is certainly higher given the fact that not all citizens have been tested, nor is that possible, and also because those who are infected may have extremely mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, and therefore do not contact healthcare facilities," said Cvijanović.

President Cvijanović said that RS was among the first in the region to introduce rigorous measures - closing schools, kindergartens and catering facilities, establishing a new work regime in collectives, limiting store operations and introducing new rules for shopping, launching classes for primary school students via the Public Service of the Republic of Srpska, and preparing a concept for organizing classes for secondary schools and universities.

She also said that the government has initiated a procedure for the procurement of a mobile hospital with 500 beds, which will be delivered in about ten days, and that continuous procurement of coronavirus tests is underway, as well as the procurement of ventilators, which is a problem even for far more developed countries.

"The procurement of an additional 25,000 tests, which should arrive in a few days, will enable us to more stably check the health status of the population regarding this virus, and thus take more adequate measures," said Cvijanović.

She said that citizens face several difficult weeks, possibly months, and that it depends on the discipline of all of us whether we will emerge from this problem with smaller or greater losses and damage.

"To ease the work of our healthcare workers and reduce the number of fatal outcomes in our community, the only way is to avoid social contacts or reduce them to the lowest possible level when necessary, but even then strictly adhering to the instructions of the competent authorities. This means that all of us, without exception, as citizens of the Republic of Srpska, are obliged to strictly adhere to these instructions, so that the situation in the coming days or weeks does not spiral out of control, as we have seen in some far more developed European countries," said Cvijanović.

She said that the messages coming from developed countries, showing that their healthcare systems are on the verge of collapse, should be an alarm for all of us.