Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa has called on the national government to declare Kilifi a priority county in the coronavirus fight.
Ms Jumwa’s comments come in wake of revelations that Kilifi Deputy Governor Gideon Saburi, who is coronavirus positive, had contact with many people after his Germany trip.
“As might already be public knowledge, the alleged infection of Kilifi Deputy Governor Gideon Saburi with the contagious Covid-19 disease has sparked massive panic across the county, over fears that the patient might have infected others he came into contact with, on multiple public gatherings he attended prior to his admission in hospital,” said Ms Jumwa.
Now the Ms Jumwa wants the National Emergency Response Committee on Coronavirus to rollout urgent measures for extensive screening of Kilifi residents.
‘’I am particularly worried about the capacity of the Kilifi health department to solely contain further spread of the virus within the county and the larger Coastal Region, at the moment given that this case was confirmed a week into the patient’s stay in the county after his return from the virus-striken Germany,” said the Malindi MP.
Mr. Saburi was forced into quarantine after he refused to self-isolate on his return from Germany.
On Sunday, the Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said that Mr. Saburi will be arrested and charged in court for violating the self-quarantine directive once he recovers from coronavirus.
“While I laud Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe’s order that Saburi and others who violate the 14-days mandatory self-quarantine will be prosecuted for endangering the lives of Kenyans, I am concerned that the current anxiety in Kilifi has not been accorded the seriousness and urgency it deserves,” said Ms Jumwa.
On Sunday, Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi said he had self-quarantined because he had come into contact with his infected deputy.
After his Germany trip, the Kilifi deputy governor visited night clubs, attended funeral ceremonies and staff meetings.
