ARE WE READY?
It’s been 3 months since the first press release by the President Uhuru Kenyatta that announced the first case COVID-19 case in the country. Since then, the country has gone through a couple of phases the first being panic which saw Kenyans bulk buying household goods, the second stage was were by many people followed the MOH guidelines on COVID-19 to the latter and the last stage which is being experienced at the moment is of laxity. Kenyans are wearing the wrong kind of masks and not even wearing them right. In places like the open-air market in Gikomba, social distancing is a pipe dream, as no one really has the time since everyone seeks to eke a living. The words of Mutahi Kagwe “If we continue to behave normally this disease will treat us abnormally”, fell on deaf ears, not because Kenyans are but because its a gig economy and people have to eat.
With the economy at its feet, most of us would like the president to lift the lockdown. We all want to experience the freedom to loiter, visit family and take to our favourite restaurant. For the trader in Gikomba, they finally want to get their goods and continue with their trade, the pilot from KQ, cannot wait to hear the humming of the engines as he controls the big bird during take-off while the young graduate from Daystar university would like to have a one on one graduation and not a virtual one. With the country having surpassed 7188caseload and 154 deathS is this the right move? Should the intercounty lockdown and curfew be lifted? If lifted on the 6th of July which risks and dangers will we be exposed to? What will be the impact of this inaudible situation on the country? At the same time, if the lockdown is extended, what will be the impact on the economy? Will Kenyans bleed to the ground? These are some of the questions that have been making rounds in my mind from the past month.6th July is quickly approaching and our fingers are crossed. For now, we wait.
My opinion is that we are flying blind and the country is not ready for the lockdown to be lifted. This is because of the data that we have, with 259 confirmed cases, full hospitals and poor health services.
“We are going to start domestic flights and this is what we are going to use as our trial over the next couple of days because we are opening up the lockdown of intercounties,” President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Speaking during a virtual leaders forum on US-Africa trade convened by the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) on Sunday, his excellency acknowledged that Covid-19 response measures had helped save lives, President Uhuru noted that the interventions have led to negative economic effects. He said the informal sector, tourism and the hotel industry suffered the heaviest burden adding, that his administration had put in place measures to cushion vulnerable communities and businesses from the adverse effects of the pandemic. The lockdown which was extended on 6th June 2020 for a further 30 days elapses on 6th July 2020. The National Emergency Response Committee will this week either ease the current measures or tighten to extend them. This is because the period given to the counties by the President to set up a 300-bed capacity isolation centres is fast coming to an end. As of Thursday, only 12 counties had met the requirement, with the rest of the counties still racing against time to achieve the target.
The president's plan to return the country to full normalcy faces challenges as infections rise exponentially. Businesses like bars and schools and places of worship remain shut as passenger vehicles carry half their capacity to curb the spread of the disease. Even though we are all optimistic of the lockdown to be lifted, we harbour jitters as it is worrying that the cases are rising faster at a time when the government is supposed to lift restrictions to reopen the economy.
At the moment we are in limbo, should we chase the economy or should the focus be on the risk that will come if the lockdown is lifted?