(The Center Square) – While he continues strict COVID-19 mitigations, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritkzer says his approach is in line with the World Health Organization that said lockdowns should be avoided. A state representative thinks there are ulterior motives than slowing the spread of the virus.
WHO’s special envoy on COVID-19 said the only time a lockdown is justified is to buy time to reorganize, regroup and rebalance resources to protect health workers.
“We in the World Health Organization do not advocate lockdowns as the primary means of control of this virus,” David Nabarro told The Spectator Oct. 8. “Look what’s happening to poverty levels. It seems that we may well have a doubling of world poverty by next year. Seems that we may well have at least a doubling of child malnutrition because children are not getting meals at school and their parents, in poor families, are not able to afford it.
“This is a terrible, ghastly global catastrophe, actually,” Nabarro said.
While Pritzker’s stay-at-home order has been lifted for months, Illinois’ economy is still held at bay by continued unilateral economic restrictions. As for schools, the state has allowed local districts to restrict in-school instruction. Many school children are still learning fully remote.
Pritzker said his administration’s efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 are vindicated by WHO’s statements.
“You’ve seen that we’ve moved from an original stay-at-home order to a restore Illinois order that’s moved us along in terms of reopening things,” Pritzker said when asked to respond to the WHO statement. “We’re doing everything that we can to try to prevent more people from getting COVID … In fact, there was a fact check on that that determined that precisely what I’m saying is precisely what this … WHO director said.”
Illinois still has a variety of economic limitations unilaterally imposed by Pritzker, including no indoor bar and restaurant service for the northwestern part of the state.
While Illinois’ restrictions aren’t as severe as the restrictions Michagan’s Supreme Court struck down earlier this month, Pritzker’s orders are still being challenged in state and federal court.
State Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, says he’s going to take his case challenging whether there’s a health emergency in Clay County all the way up to the Illinois Supreme Court.
President Donald Trump during Thursday’s NBC televised town hall said the strict mitigations must come to an end.
“The fact is we’re winning all these cases because it’s unconstitutional what they’re doing and I think they’re doing it for political reasons,” Trump said.
Bailey said Friday that Pritzker is trying to “destroy the state of Illinois.”
“And the reason he wants to destroy the state of Illinois is so he can be first in line for a federal bailout,” Bailey said.
Former Gov. Bruce Rauner sent similar sentiments to NBC Chicago in May during the height of Pritzker’s month’s long stay-at-home order.
“We’ve put this problem almost entirely on the backs of our children (who are at virtually no risk from this disease) – trillions in debt they have to pay back, lost jobs and internships, and loss of virtually an entire year of their education when you factor in ‘summer loss’ and limited internet and enrichment opportunities,” Rauner said in May.
Pritzker’s administration didn’t return messages seeking comment Friday.
Trump has refused to “bail out” what he said are cities and states being poorly run by Democrats.
Nabarro said the best way to live with the virus is to do what he called the “Middle Way,” and that’s to open the economy while locally controlling the virus.
“Remember, lockdowns just have one consequence you must never ever belittle and that is making poor people an awful lot poorer,” Nabarro said.
