Cabinet Secretary for Health, Mutahi Kagwe has revealed why the curfew is only imposed at night after a number of Kenyans were left baffled by the directive.
Kenyans wondered why the curfew was only imposed at night, yet day time is busier with more interactions.
In a press briefing on Friday, March 27, Kagwe revealed why the curfew has only been enforced at night. "As earlier announced by His Excellency the President, from this evening 7 pm to 5 am in the morning there will be a curfew countrywide.
"The curfew continues every evening until further notice. This curfew has been necessitated by the fact that it has been very difficult to maintain social distancing.
"A lot of our people have been infected as a result of social interactions and from our own observation, usually in the evening and at night.
Matatus have also contributed to the curfew being enforced at night, "Secondly even when we have asked people to do self-quarantine for the mandatory 14 days, we have observed the habit of social distancing by day and flouting of the same by night.
"This is unacceptable, we have also noticed even in public transportation that the rules are observed during the day and flouted in the evening and at night.
Partying was also raised as another concern that led to the dusk till dawn curfew, "Further we have observed a lot of the people who have the potential as carriers of the disease being young people who tend to socialise at night.
"So what we are trying to do is basically curtail social interactions and increase social distancing."
President Uhuru Kenyatta issued a nationwide curfew from 7 pm to 5 am that was set to commence on Friday, March 27.
Curfews and lockdowns have proven to be an effective measure to flatten the curve of Coronavirus spread as it minimizes contact between people.
This will be the first time that a curfew has been imposed since August 1, 1982, when some elements in the Kenya Air Force attempted to overthrow the second President of Kenya, Daniel Arap Moi.
