PM says face masks ‘unpleasant but necessary’ in schools
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis reiterated the importance of the face coverings in halting the spread of the coronavirus, particularly on schools, saying it is the “surest proven means” of protection.
“Normal life, as we remember it, will not return either quickly or automatically. We all need to be careful in our daily behaviors. It is not pleasant to wear a mask for many hours, but it is necessary,” he told lawmakers during a debate on the handling of the pandemic by the government, requested by the leader of the center-left Movement for Change (KINAL), Fofi Gennimata.
Mitsotakis rejected criticism that the government was successful in stemming the spread of the first wave of the virus but was unprepared to reopen the economy.
“It is wrong to hear such views. We had predicted the outbreak. We could not stay in eternal lockdown,” he said, adding that Greece has managed to avoid the thousands of deaths recorded in other countries.
In the last seven days, health authorities have seen a stabilization of the new number of infections and even a possible slight decrease, but this is “not a cause for complacency,” he warned.
He also called on all political parties to support the health protocols proposed by the experts on schools so as not to give the impression that opposition parties are somehow condoning conspiracy theories circulating on the internet.
