Minister Bandula Gunawardena says that he was infected with the corona virus from his driver who was infected with the corona.

 He says that he wore the best type of face mask and removed it only in the car.

Noting this, he has written a statement  in his social media account.

“As a Member of Parliament in a time of emergency in the country, I will not be relieved of my duties and I will continue to carry out my duties through Zoom technology today for the safety of all my officers and relatives.

I also advise myself and all those who have been on duty closely for the past few days to self-quarantine and to perform their duties online easily, as it is clear that a moment’s departure from duty could be detrimental to the entire people of the country. I will fulfill the responsibility safely.

Also, I see that the only advice I should give you is that you should never remove the mask. This is because I have been wearing the Respirone Nano AV 99 face mask manufactured at the University of Peradeniya for a long time and there have been many instances where I have been healthy among many people who have been diagnosed with the infection.

But in my official car I removed the face mask. I believe I was infected when I was driving without a face mask when a driver was driving my car who did not even know he was infected with the virus at the time. So do not remove the mask that protects you for a moment. “