Residents taking advantage of the Kenya-Tanzania border porosity, are said to be further exposing Kajiado County to the risk of contracting the deadly disease
By Albert Lemomo
The County Department of Health has revealed that the two confirmed cases reported by the Ministry of Health, are a Tanzanian national 38, and his wife 32, who are both Isinya residents.
In a report, County Health Minister Esther Somoire said the husband has a history of travel from-and-to Tanzania last week Wednesday, and were picked by the County Surveillance team in the town.
The two cases “were then isolated at Kitengela Sub-county hospital isolation center and have since been moved to the Kajiado County referral hospital for further management,” states the report, as tracing for their contacts commences.
This brings to a total of seven confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the county.
Yesterday, there were two other confirmed cases, which the department said were picked from from Namanga and Kajiado quarantine facilities.
One of them was a 36-years-old veterinary doctor working with the East African Community, and had stayed in Arusha, Tanzania for two weeks, before coming to the country through a ‘panya’ route.
He was however arrested at the Isinya road block, for what the department said, “through immigration support”, and was consequently admitted at the ACK Kajiado quarantine facility on May 4.
His samples were collected, the following day, and was thereafter confirmed positive for the virus. He is admitted in an isolation ward at the Kajiado referral.
Going by the new development, where Namanga border is deemed to be posing grave danger for Kajiado County, in regard to the Covid-19 spread, security operators have since intensified their surveillance to curb irregular movement through the porous border.
President John Magufuli of the neighboring Republic of Tanzania, has in the recent past, attracted criticism home and abroad, for his “lackluster” approach to dealing with the coronavirus — with social distancing being hardly practiced, and mosques and churches remaining open.
This saw some “rogue” Kenyans, taking advantage of the border porosity to cross to the country to attend worship sessions, while others go for revelry, a matter that has raised concern that it could by extent further expose their compatriots to possible infections with the novel pandemic.
As a result, Rift Valley regional commissioner George Natembeya recently toured the border post, where he warned that stern action will be taken against anyone found culpable of the vice.
