“The virus looks at where you are. It doesn’t matter what nationality you are. I live here as a privileged resident. I look at the situation the same way. I’m home with the kids. In terms of work, we support the measures taken by the Albanian government to increase social distance so that the virus does not spread,” said UN’s Brian Williams
TIRANA – “There may have been cases before the one officially identified,” the UN Coordinator in Tirana, Brian J. Williams has said in a talk show on News24 TV studio focusing on the situation in Albania caused by the coronavirus and the measures taken by the Albanian authorities to cope with the epidemics. “Measures have been taken in a timely manner,” said Mr. Williams, who revealed on Thursday that he had implemented the measures like all Albanians working from home. “The virus looks at where you are. It doesn’t matter what nationality you are. I live here as a privileged resident. I look at the situation the same way. I’m home with the kids. In terms of work, we support the measures taken by the Albanian government to increase social distance so that the virus does not spread,” he said.
“We have supported the Albanian government and decided to work from home. I scheduled a meeting with all UN staff yesterday (Wednesday), and we called it cloud-hold. We had 150 employees who were invited to the meeting on Skype and talked about why these measures are so important. If this helps prevent the galloping spread of the virus this is a worthy price to pay,” said UN’s top envoy to Tirana.
Further on Mr. Williams said that for the time being he was dealing with the crisis in this Balkan country and, according to him, this kind of epidemic is spreading. “But it is important for Albania to learn from the experience of other countries,” he said.
Asked if the measures had been taken in a timely manner or they should have been taken before COVID-19 arrived Mr. Williams’ answer was: “This virus is new, it’s not that we know that much. Until a few weeks ago, nobody was worried. Every day we learn more. If you thought you could close everything in Tirana it would be difficult. When you look at other countries, you are not crazy. It could have been done 1-2 days before, maybe. But they started taking it directly. Social distancing is the thing to do. We need to reduce contact from person to person. The decision was made very quickly.”
The UN Coordinator was of the opinion that the situation could be confronted by doing the job together. “It is the right moment for a kind of national unity,” he urged. However he noted that the most important thing the UN is doing is working with the World Health Organization (WHO).
“They are advising the Albanian government. One of the WHO’s top tips is exactly this: “Don’t go to the doctor, go home, call 127!” WHO has worked. It’s more a matter of technical assistance. It is knowledge that helps most. It is up to the citizens. It is time to follow the advice. Follow the instructions,” concluded his talk the UN Coordinator in Albania, Brian Williams. /argumentum.al
