WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a press briefing on Monday said that the pandemic is only about to worsen globally and that “there will be no return to the old normal for the foreseeable future”.
“I want to be straight with you. There will be no return to the old normal for the foreseeable future. I repeat, there will be no return to the old normal for the foreseeable future. But there is a roadmap to a situation where we can control the disease and get on with our lives.”
“We cannot go back to the way we did things before my friends. Business as usual has failed us. We must come together in a global conversation to take these hard borne lessons and turn them into action. My friends, make no mistake. The greatest threat that we face now is not the virus itself, rather it is the lack of leadership and solidarity at the global and national levels.”, Tedros said.
WHO Director General Tedros shed tear in a press conference on 9 July and he urged for unity.
Is his tear for 0.5 million death caused by China Virus, or for US's withdrawal from WHO, or for possible investigation of his breach of duty in future?https://t.co/ohnyZCFTc7 pic.twitter.com/e8y4emaLuE— Somethink More (@SomethinkMore) July 11, 2020
He said that that too many countries are heading in the wrong direction present and that ‘the virus remains the public enemy number 1’.
He further added that we cannot defeat the pandemic with a divided world. “The COVID19 pandemic is a test of global solidarity and global leadership. The virus thrives on division but is thwarted when we unite. How is it difficult for humans to unite to fight a common enemy that is killing people indiscriminately?”
There will be no return to the “old normal” for the foreseeable future. But there is a roadmap to a situation where we can control #COVID19 and get on with our lives. No matter where a country is in its epidemic curve, it is never too late to take decisive action. https://t.co/qz4s8KWsYV pic.twitter.com/qxd3tsgAuf
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) July 14, 2020
He said that controlling the pandemic would require three things to be done: a focus on reducing mortality and suppressing transmission, an empowered and engaged community that takes individual behaviour measures and strong government leadership to coordinate strategies and efforts that are communicated clearly and consistently.