Wed 01 April 2020:
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged to donate seven months of his salary towards an Covid-19 aid campaign, designed to tackle an outbreak of the novel coronavirus in the country.
The Turkish leader made the announcement on Monday and encouraged other politicians, citizens and businessmen to follow his lead, following a meeting with officials to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I am launching the campaign personally by donating my seven-month salary,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in his address to the nation, according to state news agency Anadolu.
The National Solidarity Campaign has garnered some 5.2 million Turkish liras ($791,000) in donations from cabinet members and lawmakers, the Turkish leader added.
“Turkey is rapidly opening new hospitals, while also strengthening existing ones,” he said. “Our goal is to reach serious results by the end of the year.”
The Covid-19 virus, which was first detected in China’s Wuhan province in December, has killed more than 40,633 people worldwide with over 823,200 infections confirmed.
The majority of those infected with the virus experience only mild or moderate symptoms, that may include a fever and dry cough.
As of yet, there are no known treatments for the virus, though more than 174,333 have already recovered from the infection.
Turkey has confirmed 10,827 cases of the novel coronavirus, which has also killed 168 people in the country.
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