WHO gives message to Bolsonaro: 'This is a very serious disease'

The director general of the World Health Organization (WHO),Tedros Adhanom, insisted on Wednesday, 25, that the pandemic is "very serious" and that "in many countries, ICUs are crowded" when asked by a journalist about his message to President Jair Bolsonaro.

On Tuesday night, on television and radio, he called the coronavirus epidemic a "cold", criticized the press for spreading panic and hysteria and disauthorized governors who took more restrictive measures to prevent the dissemination under the advice of medical authorities and in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The pandemic has infected more than 400,000 people worldwide and killed 19,000. In Brazil, 2,201 people are infected and 46 have died, according to data from the Ministry of Health.

Adhanom adopted a cautious tone when asked about the stance of other governments. When asked about u.S. President Donald Trump'sresponse , who advocates reopening his country by Easter to reduce the impact of the epidemic on the real economy, the director general only praised the measures to contain the virus adopted in the United States.

Bolsonaro's speech on national television had a negative impact on the world press, in addition to generating a political crisis with his own allies and with governors,who have adopted extremely careful measures to avoid further contamination.

The new coronavirus pandemic has already reached 160 countries, infecting 441,187 and killing 19,784, according to a real-time survey by Johns Hopkins University. In the world, the worst-case scenario follows that of Italy, with 74,386 cases and 7,503, the United States in second place with 61,167 cases and 849 deaths, and Spain then with 47,610 and 3,434 respectively.