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Frode Forland, director of the National Institute of Public Health, says he had consequences when he criticized the strategy of Swedish state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell. He says this in an interview with Aftonbladet.
– I think we have had a strategy in Norway that has saved many lives, and I keep it, says the Norwegian to the Swedish newspaper.
Forland came out earlier this year and criticized Tegnell and Sweden’s strategy in relation to the corona pandemic multiple times.
– It is the soul of the Norwegian people that you must say no when you do not agree. I don’t have a bad word to say about Tegnell in private, but I don’t agree with all his assessments, he says.
Arguments on Sweden’s strategy
– Swedes don’t like criticism
The criticism has not gone unnoticed in the neighboring country, and the director says he subsequently received threats and hateful messages.
– That’s right online. Not everyone likes it when you say no, especially the Swedes, says the Norwegian.
He doesn’t want to delve into the exact content of the hate messages, but he thinks the answer says something about how Swedes view their “hero” Tegnell.
– It’s interesting, you want strong leaders in times of crisis. In Sweden it has become Tegnell, but in Norway it has not become me. I’m happy about that, says Forland.
– Hailed as the fifth member of ABBA
It is not the «Norwegian Tegnell»
– I see that the Swedish media often refer to me as the ‘Norwegian Tegnell’, but that is not true. Furthermore, Tegnell is not mentioned as the “Swedish Forland” in Norway.
Forland explains that, unlike in Sweden, responsibilities at FHI are spread over many positions and various decision makers.
The comparison with Tegnell is not something he likes, and he thinks the “cult” around the Swedish state epidemiologist is strange.
The subject director says he talks to Tegnell every week, along with the other Nordic countries. Although there are storms in the media sometimes, they maintain a professional tone, he says.
