London, July 28: The National Supervisory Committee for Combating Swine Flu (H1N1 virus) has not issued any resolution demanding resident expatriates to produce a medical clearance certificate that proves they are not infected with H1N1 virus upon returning to the country, a senior health official affirmed today.
“The news about this issue is completely untrue,” Dr. Ali bin Shuker, Director of the Ministry of Health and Chairman of the Technical Health Committee for Combating Swine Flu, emphasised.
“The National Supervisory Committee for Combating Swine Flu, which is chaired by Health Minister Dr. Hanif Hassan, is committed to standards set out by the World Health Organisations (WHO) in fighting the H1N1 virus,” he added.
The top health official also affirmed that the Committee had not taken a resolution to install thermal scanners at shopping centres in the country. “The idea was not even included on the agenda of the two committees,” he stressed.
According to him, the competent authorities are currently striving to implement a public awareness plan devised in cooperation with other government stakeholders including the ministries of education and higher education and the General Authority for Islamic Affairs and Endowment.
“The National Supervisory Committee for Combating Swine Flu (H1N1 virus) is handling issues regarding this disease with transparency and clarity out of its keenness for the safety of the public,” he maintained.
“The Committee keeps the public opinion updated with the latest developments through its weekly update on the virus it issues every Monday or through TV interviews its officials give to TV and Radio stations and other media outlets,”he explained.