Dr. Anthony Fauci, di US infectious disease chief
Dr. Anthony Fauci, di US infectious disease chief email dey make pipo tok. So wetin we learn from dem?
Thousands of private emails from US infectious disease chief Dr Anthony Fauci don reveal di concern and confusion wen di pandemic start.
One National Institutes of Health specialist wey im career span ova seven US presidents, Dr Fauci, wey be 80 years, become di face of di kontri Covid-19 response and since don become been di subject of both praise and criticism.
Tori be say ova 3,000 pages of emails, na im tori pipo Washington Post, Buzzfeed News and CNN through di Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, wey date back from January to June 2020.
Im conversations give idea of wetin happun during di early days of US Covid outbreak and im dealings wit di goment, foreign and domestic health officials, di media, celebrities and everyday Americans.
Wetin di emails say?
Di e Wuhan lab theory
In di early days Dr Fauci and im colleagues, theory be say say Covid-19 fit don leak from one laboratory for Wuhan, China.
Sabi pipo bin dismiss di controversial claim last year, dem say e dey "extremely unlikely". No evidence don comot to support dat claim.
But in recent days, wit all di criticism and international probe about di virus origin and new reports of Covid-related sickness for di region weeks before dem officially identify wetin e be, di theory don begin cause serious debate again.
One January 2020 email to Dr Fauci from di director of di kontri largest biomedical research facility bin suggest di "unusual features" of di virus wey dem say indicate say e fit dey "engineered", wey make Dr Fauci say I go reach out via phone.
For April 2020, one email from di director of di National Institute of Health, Francis Collins, to Dr Fauci wit di subject line "conspiracy gains momentum". Di doctor response to this dey fully redacted.
Dis May, Dr Fauci say him "no dey convinced" say di virus origin dey natural and give im support for an investigation.
On masks
For di early months of di virus, US goment bin still dey work out mask guidance - one move wey many pipo criticise say e add to di confusion.
For February 2020 email exchange wit one former US health secretary, Dr Fauci said: "Masks really na for infected pipo to prevent them from spreading infection to pipo wey no dey infected rather than protecting uninfected pipo from getting di infection."
He add say mask wey dem buy for "no really dey effective to keep out di virus, wey dey small enough to pass through material".
Di following month, one friend for di Chinese public health field bin write to say dem misquote am for media to say di West dey make a "big mistake" not to recommend mask use.
Dr Fauci resply: "I understand. No problem. We go get through dis together."
Questions from all sides
As di public begin look for answers to di crisis, Dr Fauci receive inquiries from across di US - including Hollywood and Silicon Valley.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg bin invite di doctor to take part for one social media platform Covid information hub and respond to users' questions.
Actress Morgan Fairchild - wey bin work with am during di Aids epidemic for 1980s - she bin reach out to am for February to ask how she fit help.
Dr Fauci bin suggest make she tweet: "Di American public no suppose fear, but dem suppose dey prepared to reduce di outbreak for di kontri wit measures wey include social distancing, teleworking, temporary closure of schools, etc."
And, soon afta dat one na phone call with Bill Gates, one senior executive for Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation bin write to say him dey "seriously worried" about Dr Fauci health and safety.
Di emails also reveal Dr Fauci frequently and firmly shut down rumours say President Trump bin dey censor am.
See Reactions so far?
Some conservative politicians and media analyst don cite di emails as dem dey call for di sack of Dr Fauci for im work on di pandemic response.
US Senator Rand Paul, one Republican who bin clash frequently wit Dr Fauci for hearings on Capitol Hill, say di the emails make am "very clear" say di doctor na "one massive fraud".
Across the political parties, liberals dey argue say Dr Fauci positions bin adapt to di scientific evidence wey bin dey available at dat time. Odas celebrate im style and tone of response to various emails.
