Nairobi News

Must ReadNews

Partying in quarantine forces govt to extend isolation by 14 days


Kenyans and foreigners who have been in quarantine centres will now have to extend their stay by 14 days.

This was ordered by the Ministry of Health after it emerged that some of the people placed under quarantine were sneaking out to go partying, in what authorities fear could spread Covid-19 further.

“As I said, there are those who went on partying sprees in quarantine facilities. This is against every protocol that we have issued. But in a bid to further contain any further transmission arising from those in mandatory quarantine we have instructed our medical teams to extend quarantine period of those in facilities which we believe have got individuals who need another 14 days, given the fact that the contacts they have within the quarantine facilities have tested positive,” said Health CS Mutahi Kagwe.

Kagwe said it was regrettable that people were hell-bent on disregarding the social distancing directive issued by his ministry that is aimed at keeping the deadly virus at bay.

The CS indicated that some individuals had violated directives and would place many other Kenyans at risk if they were released.

“We have had cases of people testing positive in our quarantine facilities, indeed, currently, they rank among the highest. This is likely to pose a risk of more transmission, especially among those who have been sharing facilities or those who have not taken seriously the distancing requirements,” the CS ordered.

He apologized for the extension emphasising that it was for their own benefit considering the heightened contact within the centers.

The extension of the days has not been positively received by some of the people who have been in quarantine. They claimed that the government was treating them like prisoners.

Last week, the government published selected hotels and state facilities as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.

The list included 57 establishments where those quarantined will have to pay for their period of stay.

Among the 57 places are hotels, universities, resorts and lounges.

The government also gave the locations, full board rates in dollars, available rooms and the contact person(s).

The hotels include, Hilton Garden Inn located at the airport where one will part with Sh9,000 for a full board stay at 100-bed hotel.

At Hill Park hotel in Upperhill, a peson in quarantine will be charged Sh7,000 on full board basis in the 44-room facility.

Other hotels are Safari Park, Pride Inn Hotels, Jacaranda Hotel, Trademark Hotel, Four points Sheraton, Boma Hotel.

Kenyatta University, Kenya School of Government, Crowne Plaza airport, Mombasa Beach hotel, LaMada hotel are also in the list.

Ministry of Health has issued guidelines outlining how to manage those being kept in quarantine facilities.

Acording to the guidelines, guests should have their meals delivered at their doorsteps and once they are done eating, the used utensils should be placed in bleach solution provided by the hotel.