A key U.S. official for COVID-19 vaccine development has said that he was fired over politics rather than science.

The former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Dr. Rick Bright, released a statement on Wednesday accusing the Trump administration for firing him for political reasons.

Bright wrote that his firing "was in response to my insistence" that the Trump government should invest money into scientifically proven solutions to the coronavirus pandemic instead of things "that lack scientific merit."

"I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science – not politics or cronyism – has to lead the way," he added.

Specifically, Dr. Bright said, he does not agree with the U.S. government's promotion of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine during the crisis, because it "clearly lack(s) scientific merit."

He believes these drugs can lead to "serious risks" if used to treat COVID-19.

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Dr. Bright has worked for BARDA for roughly a decade. One of his main jobs was to respond to virus outbreaks like the current one and help develop vaccines to dangerous diseases.

Moving him to other positions during the pandemic "puts lives at risk and stunts national efforts to safely and effectively address this urgent public health crisis," he said.

The statement, if true, reflects the political pressure on researchers during the coronavirus outbreak which has killed more than 45,000 Americans.

Dr. Bright said some companies with political connections were preferably funded by the government, which may have put Americans in danger.

The novel coronavirus behind the COVID-19 pandemic does not have any political connections. It can infect any person in the world no matter what political party they are sided with.

But the Trump administration has long accused the opposition of using the pandemic as a weapon to win elections.

"A hoax," U.S. President Donald Trump has previously called the situation.

(Cover image: Dr. Rick Bright /Screenshot from BARDA)