Sad to see war of words during COVID-19 pandemic: Belleville mayor

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It isn't usual for a mayor to make international headlines. But Michael Melham, the mayor of Belleville, New Jersey, has been attracting international media attention after he disclosed that he tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies. He believes that he might have contracted the disease in November 2019, a month before China reported its first case.

"There was no other time period in the last few months that I had been that sick… during the middle of November toward the end of November," said Melham in an interview with CGTN host Tian Wei. An initial sore throat quickly turned into a high fever, chills, night sweats and body aches. For a day or two, the mayor said that he had hallucinations. But, at that time, the doctor only described it as going through "flu-like symptoms."

It wasn't until recently that the "flu" turned into a highly-likely COVID-19 episode. During a normal checkup with his doctor two weeks ago, the mayor inquired about the possibility of testing for COVID-19 antibodies. The doctor refused because he did not have the capability and equipment. A week later, the doctor got his hands on testing equipment and the mayor became the doctor's first patient to test positive for the antibody. "There's absolutely no way to definitively know a time period when I was positive," said the mayor. The test – called Immunoglobulin, or IgG – could only detect that the mayor had antibodies and didn't fight coronavirus or form immunity recently.

Aside from making the headlines, the mayor's revelation about potentially contracting COVID-19 in November is gaining traction in the media. Some are portraying him as the so-called "patient zero" – first person to contract the disease. And the mayor isn't happy about this.

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"I don't like being a patient here, but nor do I like the media calling me that," said Melham. The debate about the origin of the new type of coronavirus or who the first patient is doesn't interest the mayor as much as helping the community in whatever way he can. His willingness to go on media and share his story is mainly rooted in the belief to advocate for people to test for antibodies and donate plasma. "I'd like to leave that (finding the virus' origin and patient zero) to the scientists or the doctors who actually study this stuff," the mayor added.

As the executive officer of a city, Melham has been focusing on his people. As he expressed in the interview, none of them had any previous experience with a public health crisis. Almost a thousand cases have been detected in Belleville with over 50 fatalities. The hospitals were not equipped for handling the virus.

Because the U.S. has been hit hard by the pandemic, the mayor also addressed the current back-and-forth between China and the U.S. in a very frank manner. The city's Chinese community has a rich history, the mayor said, which can be traced back 150 years when the first Chinese New Year celebrated on the east coast of the U.S. took place in Belleville. For him, this means that the current war of words is sad to see.

But, just as the mayor said that his focus is to help his people, national leadership should do the same. Fighting the pandemic and getting things back to normal should take priority. A war of words helps no one.

World Insight with Tian Wei is an international debate/in-depth interview program facilitated by host Tian Wei. People in the know, be they global leaders or emerging change-makers, all provide their insights on this unique global platform.

Schedule: Monday-Saturday

Time (GMT): 1415, 2015

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