On Friday 18, former World Bank Vice President Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili shared her article published on the Washington Post, where she made the case for China to forgive Africa of its debt as compensation for the ravages of coronavirus on the continent. The logic behind the case is based on the assertion that the pandemic has set Africa 10 years back by eliminating all the economic progress it has made within the period.
It was more to the voices calling to hold China accountable for the economic consequences of COVID-19, which almost every country in the world has had a bite of.
China has been at the center stage of the outbreak that originated in the city Wuhan late last year, and spread like wildfire across continents and countries with devastating impacts. It appears that the controversy is about to take a new dimension. Among many conspiracy theories that have trailed the outbreak is the suspicion that it may have been created in a Chinese lab.
Tekedia Mini-MBA edition 16 (Feb 10 – May 3, 2025) opens registrations; register today for early bird discounts.
Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass opens registrations here.
Join Tekedia Capital Syndicate and invest in Africa’s finest startups here.
On Saturday, the U.S. President Donald Trump warned that China would face consequences if the suspicion is true, though China has vehemently refuted the claim.
“It could have been stopped in China before it started and it wasn’t, and the whole world is suffering because of it,” Trump told reporters. “If it was a mistake, a mistake is a mistake. But if they were knowingly responsible, then there should be consequences.”
The United States like every other country has watched its economy plunged helplessly, businesses shutting down and people getting thrown out of work.
It is in this vein that the call to hold China to account is being consolidated and the volume is getting on the increase as many more countries join.
The UK and France have been co-advocates of “holding China responsible” for the outbreak of coronavirus – The main reason being the perceived dishonesty of China in handling matters relating to the virus. The UK has joined the U.S. intelligence officials in investigating if the virus originated from a Wuhan lab, setting off a new wave of anger from Western nations.
A story published by DailyMail said Wuhan Institute of Virology was conducting a coronavirus experiment on bats with a $3.7 million U.S. grant, according to documents obtained by the English tabloid. The mammals were captured 1,000 miles away in Yunnan and sequencing of the COVID-19 genome has traced it to bats found in Yunnan caves. It is believed that an accident may have happened exposing the scientists working in the lab {that has now become the center of investigation}, to the virus when they were sprayed by the blood of the animal containing the virus.
The whole world gradually believes that China has something to hide in all these and should be made to pay. The birth of the hashtag #ChinaLiedAndPeopleDied on Twitter reinforces the narrative that there is more that the South Asian country is not telling the rest of the world.
As the hashtag trend last week Friday, China upped the figure of cases in Wuhan, including the diseased by 50%, suggesting that the impact of the virus must have been downplayed through government’s cover ups.
Ryan Fournier, the founder and co-chairman of Turning Point Action said China must be held accountable.
“Unfortunately we will probably never really know how many perished in China. They will continue to lie about this, and blame the United States. We must hold them accountable,” he said.
In her piece, Ezekwesili said that China acted irresponsibly and it collapsed not only the economies of African nations, but also that of the rest of the world. And for that reason, she should be held accountable.
“In short, what Africa must first be accorded in this particular crisis are damages and liability compensation from China – the rich and powerful country that reportedly failed to transparently and effectively manage this global catastrophe,” she said.
While other nations are still talking, contemplating on how to approach the “China must pay” mantra, Germany has sent an invoice. Germany’s largest newspaper tabloid Bild, had last week drawn up an itemized invoice of €149 billion under the title, “China owe us”, as expected compensation from China. They can use an invoice maker & receipt generator for that. Lol.
The tabloid made the calculation based on the economic losses incurred by Germany as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The charges include €27 billion tourism revenue, €7.2 billion euros for the German film industry, a million an hour for German airline Lufthansa and €50 billion for German small businesses.
The invoice was drawn based on the calculation of €1,784 per person if Germany’s GDP falls by 4.2%.
In response, China says the invoice is xenophobic and stirs nationalism. It is expected that many more countries will follow suit in no time.
Yes, China is culpable. Many countries know this but are keeping quiet because there is no proof yet.
A different angle to the accusation is that a wealthy American businessman funded the Wuhan lab experiment, though unfounded at this moment. But in every fact, there is an element of truth.