Main opposition leader says coronavirus scientific board 'held hostage' by Erdoğan

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Ministry of Health coronavirus advisors should be more courageous for necessary measures amid a new surge to be taken, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has said.

"I've met with intensive care doctors, I'm not sharing their identities so that they don't come under pressure," he said on Twitter yesterday.

"In short, our Scientific Board is a hostage. They are all hostages of a person," he wrote, apparently referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. "I'm calling out to them: Don't be afraid, speak up, we're with you."

Over the past week, coronavirus cases and deaths in Turkey have reached unprecedented levels, making it one of the top five countries in daily new cases.

The Scientific Board will convene today (April 12) to discuss stricter measures.

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"We know how grave the situation is and the duty has not been fulfilled in this context. We reproach the Scientific Board a little bit," Kılıçdaroğlu said in a video message on Twitter. "Our friends there should be a little more courageous. They should inform the public a little more."

With the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan tomorrow, cafes and restaurants will be restricted to takeaway and delivery services after reopening in early March.

Erdoğan said last week that "Our purpose is to make our country have a rest during Ramadan and prepare it for the period after the feast. We are aiming to reduce our numbers during Ramadan."

In the meeting that was initially scheduled for Thursday but was postponed to today, the Scientific Board will discuss additional measures, including banning "collective visits," intercity travels and suspending in-person education, the pro-government daily Hürriyet reported yesterday.

Currently, a lockdown on weekends and weeknight are in place in 58 of the 81 provinces which are classified as "very high-risk areas." (RT/AS/VK)