BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 2
Trend:
Both public policy and the growing responsibility of citizens have allowed us the opportunity to keep the [COVID-related] situation under control to this day, President Ilham Aliyev said in an interview to the Azerbaijani Television following viewing conditions created at the newly constructed building of Absheron District Central Hospital, Trend reports.
“We are, of course, very pleased that international organizations appreciate Azerbaijan's activities. But our main goal has been to protect our people and citizens. After all, it was not clear in the first days of the pandemic what the dangers or complications of this disease were. In fact, there is still no complete research on that. Therefore, we took these steps from the early days and, at the same time, established contacts with the World Health Organization to try to work as effectively as possible in this area. As you have mentioned, the World Health Organization already talks about an “Azerbaijan model”, praises the work done, and has repeatedly cited Azerbaijan as an exemplary country. At the same time, I was recently informed that Gallup, the world's leading polling company, also conducted an opinion poll among Azerbaijani citizens. Eighty-six percent of our citizens appreciate the activity of the state in this area, and according to this indicator, Azerbaijan ranks fourth in the world. In other words, both international organizations, the World Health Organization, which is a leading organization in this field, and the people of the country appreciate our work. This is an indicator in itself and shows that we are on the right path. We have always told the truth to the citizens. We have always said that this is necessary, if we do not do this, we will face major problems, and our health care system will not be able to mobilize its resources to treat the growing number of patients. I am glad that citizens met all our calls with understanding. As a result, both public policy and the growing responsibility of citizens have allowed us the opportunity to keep the situation under control to this day,” the head of state said.