By Asmau Ahmad
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned against misinformation on social media and in the mainstream media against global pandemic accord.
According to the UN health agency, social media is spreading information alleging that a new global pandemic accord being negotiated will allow WHO to override national sovereignty relating to a future outbreak.
WHO Director General, Tedros Ghebreyesus, said at a press conference in Geneva on Thursday that “the claim that the accord will cede power to WHO is quite simply false. It’s fake news.”
He made it clear that countries themselves would decide the wording and scope of any global agreement on how to tackle the next pandemic.
“No country will cede any sovereignty to WHO,” the director-general said.
News reports have highlighted several instances of online news sources and commentators in recent weeks, falsely claiming that the Biden administration in the United States, was negotiating a deal to allow WHO to “control” emergency laws in the event of another pandemic, such as COVID-19.
Ghebreyesus said if any politician, business leader, “or anyone at all is confused about what the pandemic accord is and isn’t, we would be more than happy to discuss it and explain it.”
Addressing the rapid response to Tanzania’s first ever Marburg Virus Disease outbreak, Ghebreyesus said national responders trained jointly by WHO and the U.S. Centres for Disease Control, had been deployed to the affected region, to carry out further investigations an provide care.
“So far, eight cases are confirmed, including five deaths,” he told journalists, while more than 160 contacts have been identified.
He said Tanzania was able to confirm the outbreak because the first samples were tested at a mobile lab set up with WHO’s support last year to prepare for outbreaks of viral haemorrhagic fever, including Ebola and Marburg.
“Equatorial Guinea also reported an outbreak of Marburg virus disease in February and since then, eight additional laboratory-confirmed cases have been reported, bringing the total to nine confirmed and 20 probable cases.
“WHO has deployed experts to Equatorial Guinea to support the government’s response, and to strengthen community engagement,” he said
Marburg belongs to the same family of viruses as Ebola, and causes similar symptoms, transmitting between human in the same way with a high rate of fatalities.
