Zardari admitted to ICU due to severe chest infection
KARACHI: Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari was shifted to an intensive care unit (ICU) of a private hospital in Karachi on Sunday evening and reportedly has a severe chest infection. Various medical experts are examining the former president on a regular basis.
According to his personal physician, Dr. Asim Hussain, the former president’s blood sugar level had also dropped drastically. According to reports, various medical experts are examining the former president and conducting various tests under the supervision of Dr. Hussain.
“Former President of Pakistan and PPPP @AAliZardari was shifted to hospital after feeling unwell late Sunday evening. Doctors are conducting his medical check-up and necessary medical tests,” the PPP’s spokesperson said in a Tweet earlier.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had also expressed concerns over his father’s appearances in the court amid fear of contracting Covid-19. Meanwhile, a party insider told that nowadays Zardari has not been actively participating in political affairs of the party and mostly remained at his residence at Bilawal House, Karachi.
He said the PPP leadership would decide about the resumption of Zardari’s political activities in the light of his physician’s advice. The ailing former president was released from jail in December last year after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) approved his bail in corruption cases on medical grounds.
He had been suffering from ischemic heart disease, which means his heart may have an inadequate supply of blood and oxygen. He also has severe pain in L5-S1 vertebra of the spinal cord. An accountability court in Islamabad last month indicted the former president, his sister Faryal Talpur and other accused in the mega-money laundering reference pertaining to the fake accounts case.
Zardari is facing multiple corruption cases that have stemmed from a mega money laundering scandal, which came into the limelight in 2018. The former president, Faryal and several of their business associates are being probed as part of a 2015 case regarding fake accounts and fictitious transactions which were initially found to have totalled Rs35 billion — conducted through 29 ‘benami’ accounts.
