The ministry of interior has warned funeral organizers of dire consequences if they allow more than 100 mourners to attend any funeral function in the villages.
Addressing the press at his office in Machakos Town, the County Police Commander Issa Muhamud has asked all mourners to adhere to COVID 19 guidelines and protocols.
“Everyone knows there is COVID and we will charge in court funeral organizers for any burial with mourners beyond 100. The law must be followed,” he noted.
Speaking to K24 Digital on Monday evening, Muhamud said that all Sub County Police Commanders have instructions from the ministry of health to ensure no gap in following COVID 19 protocols in any burial service.
“Each burial ceremony must be attended by only 100 mourners. Let’s not create more deaths in the community and leave mourning families suffering,” he added.
He further warned that police will be mandated to enforce the law even in funeral ceremonies to avert more transmission of COVID19.
The police boss either banned mourners from flocking into mortuaries to collect their dead saying only two vehicles will be allowed into the grounds of any morgue.
“People are gathering in mortuaries with motorcades and causing traffic jam in our roads and COVID-19 transmission risk to others. We agreed that only two vehicles, one hearse and another carrying only five close family members will be allowed in our mortuaries to collect the dead,” the commander noted.
Following the directive, uniformed police officers were dispatched on Tuesday morning to man the flow of traffic at the Machakos-Nairobi road outside the funeral homes in Machakos that had been witnessing huge traffic caused by mourners collecting their dead from the two morgues.
