Greatest threat not from COVID-19 but from lack of leadership: WHO

Geneva: The greatest threat at present is not from coronavirus but from the lack of leadership and solidarity at the global and national levels, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of World Health Organisation.

“My friends, make no mistake: The greatest threat we face now is not the virus itself,” CNN quoted Ghebreyesus as saying. “Rather, it’s the lack of leadership and solidarity at the global and national levels,” he said.

He said, “This is a tragedy that is forcing us to miss many of our friends, losing many lives. We cannot defeat this pandemic as a divided world.”

While urging the global leaders to unitedly fight against the coronavirus pandemic, he said, “How is it difficult for humans to unite to fight a common enemy that’s killing people indiscriminately? Are we unable to distinguish or identify the common enemy? Can’t we understand that the divisions or the cracks between us actually are the advantage for the virus?”

He urged a coming-together of global powers, telling attendees: “COVID-19 is a test of global solidarity and global leadership.” This statement has come after the Donald Trump administration announced the decision to withdraw the US from the World Health Organisation.

According to an Al Jazeera report, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro used his veto power to water down the law necessitating wearing masks in all public spaces. He removed provisions like compulsory face-covering in shops and churches. He was recently tested positive of coronavirus.

As per the Johns Hopkins University, a total number of 12,294,117 people globally have tested positive of coronavirus and 555,531 deaths have been reported so far.

Source: ANI