US president-elect Donald Trump plans to withdraw from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the first day of his second term.
That follows Trump’s 2020 decision to leave over unproven claims of Chinese control and his blaming of China for the COVID-19 pandemic.
The move could save $850 million in annual contributions. The incoming Trump government is also concerned with the WHO’s lack of transparency, corruption and pay-to-play deals.
Notable WHO Scandals Include:
- Widely-criticised COVID-19 lockdown measures, mask mandates and vaccination campaigns, which some argued favored Big Pharma
- WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was investigated by the Ethiopian government for embezzling public funds and rigging tenders
- Ghebreyesus has ties to the Bill and Hillary Clinton Foundation’s health initiatives, criticized by some investigators for alleged fraud
- In 2021, 21 WHO staff members were accused of sexual abuse during the response to the Ebola crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo
- The WHO faced scrutiny in 2017 for spending $200 million annually on luxury travel while allocating only $71 million to combat AIDS and hepatitis
- Critics have raised concerns over the lack of transparency in the WHO’s use of “assessed contributions” based on member states’ GDP
- In 2011, the WHO was criticized for its handling of the H1N1 flu pandemic, with accusations it caused unnecessary panic and overspent on control measures
- In 2010, the British Medical Journal reported that key WHO advisers had ties to Big Pharma, which could profit from their decisions
Nurses gather for a candlelight vigil to honor healthcare workers, during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx borough of New York City, U.S., April 14, 2020 – Sputnik International, 1920, 16.04.2020
Why Trump’s Order to Stop Funding WHO Triggers Debate on Corruption, Healthcare & Military Spending
16 April 2020, 17:58 GMT
By Ekaterina Blinova
Published by Sputnik Globe
Republished by The 21st Century
The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of 21cir.com