WHO chief says ‘worst is yet ahead of us’ as COVID-19 cases continue to rise

The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief warned that “the worst day is yet ahead of us” as the global health crisis still persists with the continuous rise in coronavirus cases. During a press briefing in Geneva, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that coronavirus is the “devil” everyone should fight, calling the disease “public enemy no. 1”.

However, the WHO chief didn’t specify the reason behind his prediction about the “worst day” since nearly 2.5 million coronavirus cases and more than 170,000 deaths have already been reported worldwide. In addition, the worst-hit European nations are now witnessing a decline in the number of COVID-19 cases.

“Trust us, the worst is yet ahead of us. Let’s prevent this tragedy. It’s a virus that many people still don’t understand,” Dr Tedros told reporters.

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'It exploits cracks'

While European governments have started easing restrictions with a decline in cases, the WHO chief warned about the “dangerous combination” of coronavirus and compared it to the deadly Spanish flu of 1918 that killed up to 100 million people. Dr Tedros also defended the UN health agency after the recent criticisms and halt of funds by the United States saying there is no secret in WHO because keeping things confidential or secret is dangerous.

“This virus is dangerous. It exploits cracks between us when we have differences,” he added.

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The WHO has been under fire over its handling of the coronavirus and accusations have been levelled on it for being “China-centric”. However, the health agency has continuously insisted that it sounded the alarm on the novel coronavirus right from the very start and had hidden nothing about the deadly virus. Dr Tedros asserted that the presence of embedded US government secondees working at the headquarters in Geneva meant there was nothing being concealed from Washington.

"Having CDC staff means there is nothing hidden from the US, from day one. Because these are Americans working with us. It just comes naturally and they tell what they are doing," said the WHO chief.

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