The headquarters of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland, January 30, 2020.  (Photo :Xinhua)

Canada recently joined a chorus initiated by the US questioning the WHO's role in the global response to the COVID-19 epidemic. The Canadian House of Commons Health Committee on Thursday decided to issue a formal summons to Bruce Aylward, one of the World Health Organization's Canadian senior advisers, to testify on the group's "contested response" to COVID-19. 

The move comes after US Senator Todd Young sent a letter to WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to express "deep skepticism" about the WHO's guidance on COVID-19 and "concern of China's influence in the organization." What do the summons issued by Canadian MPs mean? Two ex-perts shared their insights with the Global Times.

Shen Yi, director, Fudan University's Research Center for Cyberspace Govern-ance  

Canada is again becoming an accomplice in the US "buck-passing" campaign and scapegoating either WHO or China for its flawed handling of the epidemic to cover up its systematic loopholes. 

By exerting pressure on high-level medical expert Bruce Aylward, some Canadi-an politicians fawn on the US by expressing their dissatisfaction with the WHO and express doubts about China in dealing with the epidemic in the earlier stage. 

Like the US, Canada acts like a country with a self-centered "giant baby" mentality who refuses to accept the fact which it is unwilling to believe. 

The coronavirus had struck a blow to their once vaunted "superior" capabilities in responding to public health crises. The death rate from coronavirus in Cana-da, higher than that of China, crushed their illusions and sense of superiority.

Canada's deep skepticism reflects its extreme ideological anxiety and frustra-tion.

The politicians have wasted precious time from the early ignorance of the Chi-nese experience to the current blame game played by Western political parties, which is a common practice in the US and Canada.

Their narcissistic view of their own system leads them to expect that all things can go in line with their imagination. If not, they will suspect that there must be something wrong. They are still reluctant to wake up even though such blind confidence has dragged them into chaos and made them bear the consequenc-es.

They are pointing a finger at a renowned epidemiologist who led a group of WHO experts to China for a joint mission on COVID-19 in February because Aylward revealed some facts those politicians long balked at.

Aylward praised China's coronavirus prevention work, saying potential patients were well-organized and tested quickly at a press conference in Beijing in Feb-ruary.

But some in Canada continue to hold on to their prejudice against China, ig-noring some of the key elements of China's success in fighting the epidemic, which Aylward summarized and applauded.

Canada should invite Aylward back to the country for more experience sharing and consultations, but not for being blamed for its own mismanagement. 

Qian Hao, director of the Canada Research Center at Shanghai International Studies University

The Canadian MPs' summons are understandable as Canada is desperate for first-hand information on the spike in domestic coronavirus numbers, and are deeply worried about the expanding risk in the US, which has been worst hit by the virus.

The motion was largely the result of a tradeoff and balance between the Cana-dian ruling and opposition parties, as the vote was primarily initiated by the Conservative Party, and NDP Parliament members who are part of the main op-posite party wanting to have their voices heard in the upcoming election. 

Moreover, being pro-US has long been a sentiment of the conservative party and middle-class elites in Canada. If you read conservative newspapers in Can-ada, you will see the vocal criticism against China.

But I don't think this summon is targeting China, considering that the relation-ship between the two countries remains positive and the two countries' scien-tists are working together to fight the virus. 

What Canadian truly wants is more convincing instructions on COVID19. China does not have to be nervous about the suspicions, as both the WHO and China have shown the world how their judgment and treatment are  practical and val-uable. But the truth is in the scientists' hands, not politicians'.