The WHO on Thursday accused Elon Musk, without naming him, of spreading “fake news” after the multi-billionaire tweeted urging countries “not to cede their authority” over the draft international agreement to fight pandemics.
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The controversy began earlier in the day when Elon Musk tweeted, “Countries must not cede their authority to the WHO,” alluding to ongoing discussions within the UN agency to reach an agreement to help countries better prevent pandemics and to fight.
The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, initially replied to him on Twitter: “Countries do not surrender their sovereignty to the WHO”.
“The pandemic agreement will not change that. The deal will help countries better protect themselves from pandemics. It will help us better protect people, whether they live in rich or poor countries,” he said.
Countries do not give up sovereignty @WHO. tea #PandemicAccord won’t change that. The deal will help countries better protect themselves from pandemics. It will help us better protect people, whether they live in rich or poor countries. https://t.co/kYYtyOrh0u
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) March 23, 2023
Shortly thereafter came Dr. Tedros backtracked on the issue at the start of his weekly press briefing on global health issues, citing “misinformation” about the deal that was circulating on social media.
“The claim that the deal will cede power to the WHO is simply false. That’s a fake news,” he continued.
He assured that “countries will decide what the agreement says and they alone” and who “will implement the agreement in accordance with their own laws”.
And he added: “If any politician, businessman or anyone else is confused about what the Pandemic Agreement is and isn’t, we’d more than ‘love to talk and explain.’
Photo Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
In early March, Dr. Tedros told reporters that WHO member states would soon begin negotiations on the draft agreement, including addressing issues of information sharing and unequal access to vaccines observed between rich and developing countries in light of Covid.
The agreement would also strengthen national, regional and global capacities to prepare for, detect, alert and respond to pandemics.
He said he hopes negotiations could be completed by May 2024 and urged countries to “learn the lessons of this pandemic” to avoid repeating their mistakes.
This draft agreement came into being after the failure of the international community to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, with the states, but also the WHO, being accused of acting too late and with little solidarity. .