The Agenda

 

This is a docu-drama (some real quotes entwined) re-imagining the WIV Jan 11-14, 2020 Conference.  (check date) aka the Annual Scientific Retreat at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, as Duke Singapore puts it.  Any resemblance to real persons is an educated fluke.

Linfa Wang, Chairman: So let's start - it’s now clear the virus has escaped into the community. (murmuring, agreement)

This has put us in a precarious position.  Before we get started on our response plan, let me invite Party Committee Secretary He Chang-cai, who has a statement to read: 

He Chang-cai, (Secretary Party Committee):  Thank you Wang Chairman: 

The National Health Commission unequivocally requires that any tests, clinical data, test results, conclusions related to the epidemic shall not be posted on social media platforms, nor disclosed to any media outlets including government official media, nor shall it be disclosed to partner institutions. 

Wang Linfa: So thats’ pretty clear. Thanks He Secretary.  For partner institutions you can read EcoHealth, CSIRO, Columbia, Duke, UC Davis, Oxford/Edinburgh/Wellcome, Scripps, Sydney etc - all of them.

If there are things you need to communicate, and there will be, it goes through me.  I don’t need to tell you this - it’s a delicate situation - everything is on the line.   Everything.  The less moving parts on the China-West interface the better.  (agreement, nodding)

Now, our agenda here today is to discuss the steps required to deal with this crisis in the short term - with a long term view. 

In the short term, the best advice i can give is:

Don't worry - be happy.  (laughter)

First and foremost:  we’re scientists - we stay calm in a crisis - we find solutions - that's what we do.

It’s important to remember: we’ve been here before.   There's a roadmap - it will get us out - if we follow it unflinchingly.  The first rule is: act normally.  For example, we'll still go out to a restaurant every night - we'll mix together publicly - we must be seen behaving as if nothing is wrong.

Secondly: Speaking from the coalface of Hendra, then as a WHO investigator for SARS, etc, history teaches us that outbreaks present certain business-related implications that need to be … (Zhengli raises her arm) Yes, Zhengli …

Zhengli: Sorry, is this the right time to be talking about business opportunities?   There's a highly contagious virus on the loose - I’m getting blamed for it on Weibo … it’s …

Linfa: Yes, yes, Zhengli I know.

Zhengli: I don’t think you do know.  It’s ok for you - Mr. Invisible in Australia - I already had the Bat Lady nickname - so I’m the one out on a limb here - Now I …

Wang Yanyi (WIV Director): Zhengli - this is not the right time to ...

Zhengli: Now I wake up it’s vile abuse for breakfast - death threats, i’ve got …

Wang Yanyi: Zhengli, we …

Zhengli:  Have you even seen the hate-mail i’m getting?

Linfa: Yes, I have. It's abhorrent. We all feel for you and it’s important we do address it - we’ll talk about that this afternoon. For now, know that steps have been taken as of yesterday to filter out the disinformation trolls.  We’ve got your back.

Zhengli: Sorry, it’s been stressful - sorry.

Linfa: Don’t be. But in answer to your question: yes, now is the right time to discuss financial decisions. That's how it works in the big-bad-world.  If you want a market for novel virus drugs - you need a novel virus.  For whatever reason - we’ve got one.  This is our silver-lining.  If we act in the moment, play our cards right, which is all we have to do, we're uniquely positioned to add unprecedented capital/influence. 

Alignments of this magnitude do not come along every day. Director Wang has some immediate steps:

Director Wang:  Zhengli, we need you to file applications to have Remdesivir patented asap - we know it kills the virus in vitro - it may be our antidote - that's big.  Same-time start work on a Remdesivir paper, say it inhibits virus infection efficiently in a human cell line - or something to that effect -  we’ll get Nature to feature it. 

(paper published in Nature Feb 4) (*Apr 20, 2020, Gulf News, Jay Hilotin,  Karishma Nandkeolyar - great article that we first cited in May 26, 2020 - didn't realize how groundbreaking it was at the time.)

Linfa: There are billions to be made on Remdesivir alone - especially if we can make it the only approved drug.  (Zhengli jots it down)

Director Wang: Zhengli, where are we with (Wuhan Institute of) Biological Products on a vaccine?

(WIBP, which shares a complex with WIV, is the research hub of Sinopharm (zero-effectivity against Omicron, pedalled to poor countries), a bio-tech with BC criminal form.  WIBP has been named as a key dual-purpose bioweapons/defense facility (China WMD report, PDF p67))

Zhengli: Well, we were testing a promising candidate on bats as you know, when, uhm, the event, uhm, happened, so, very close. The main obstacle is logistically going through the official trials - that could take years to …

Linfa: Don’t worry about that - we can shave a couple of years off, no problem.  One year is perfect.

Gong Peng, Assistant Director: Perfect? You realize the virus will have spread world-wide by then?  It's a crisis meeting right? When are we going to talk about immediate steps we can take to stop the spread? It’s still possible to stop this virus.

Linfa: What virus? (nervous laughter)

Here's the thing. We don't want to stop it - not yet.