The building of Wuhan Institute of Virology, accused of being the source of SARS-CoV-2. (Image via Bangkok Post)

Wuhan Lab denies being 'Pandora’s Box'

Wuhan Institute of Virology denounced an accusation that the institute was the mastermind behind the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Indeed, the disease originated in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, Central China.

The accusation came from the United States (U.S), who accuses the Middle Kingdom’s dishonesty in reporting the first occurrence of the COVID-19.

According to an interview with CGTN on Sunday, the director of the lab, Yuan Zhiming, stated that it was impossible the virus (SARS-CoV-2) came from his lab. Zhiming puts his trust in the institute as it is proven credible in maintaining all viruses and its samples. Moreover, despite conducting an experiment on the virus, no staff in his lab was infected with SARS-CoV-2.

This was not the first time for the institute to be pointed as the “Pandora’s box” of the COVID-19. Last February, a similar accusation surfaced. The institute then stated that it had shared all information regarding COVID-19 to the World Health Organization (WHO) since January.

All along, SARS-CoV-2 had infected more than 2.3 million people globally. Allegedly, it came from the Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan. The President of U.S, Donald Trump, spouted that SARS-CoV-2 leaked from a lab in Wuhan. The Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, also stated that the U.S is conducting a full investigation on how SARS-CoV-2 could find its way to a global scale.

China was seen secretive when it comes to COVID-19 after several doctors in Wuhan was punished after trying to warn the public. The virus appeared in December 2019. One of the doctors, Li Wenliang, passed away after getting infected by a COVID-19 patient.

Early this week, the transparency came under question after Wuhan’s government admitted that it mistook the death rate from COVID-19 in Wuhan. After revision, the death rate leaped by more than 50 percent.

Source: https://bit.ly/2XTRQP8