Update Monday, March 30: Mayombe Odubah has been released from the quarantine facility that had detained her over a Ksh 45,000 bill.
Mayombe provided that the hotel management had agreed to release her upon payment of Ksh15,000 as opposed to Ksh45,000.
“I have been transferred to another place. My parents got to an agreement with the hotel management and paid Ksh15,000,” she stated.
Mayombe Odubah, a Kenyan student was barred from leaving one of the government's mandatory quarantine facilities over a contentious Ksh 45,000 pending bill.
The 20-year-old student had been assigned stay at a hotel in Nairobi after arriving at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in line with the government's mandatory quarantine order.
Mayombe had informed police officers as well as the hotel management that she could not afford the hotel charges which stood at Ksh 9,000 per day.
Her contention with the price was also raised by other passengers, but the authorities paid little heed and still delivered them to the hotel.
“Most passengers refused to go to the hotel but police forced and threatened us,” Mayombe explained.
Mayombe subsequently wrote a letter to the Ministry of Health explaining her financial position vis a vis the steep price at the hotel.
As per the letter, she had brought the issue before the hotel's management which had directed her to stay for a night at a negotiated fee.
“I spoke to the management and informed them I didn't have the money.The hotel management told me to spend the night at KSh7500 because I wasn’t allowed to sleep at the lobby," she narrated.
The student, however, provided that the management had not communicated with her since their initial dialogue, and it had become necessary to move to a more affordable quarantine facility.
"Management has stopped picking my calls. I was able to secure a transfer to JKUAT, which is cheaper." Mayombe expressed.
Despite her transfer, the hotel maintained that it could not release her from the obligation to clear the outstanding Ksh 45,000 bill.
"The hotel has refused to release me. My parents cannot afford this cost. I am worried,” Mayombe lamented.
Cabinet Secretary for Health Mutahi Kagwe announced the mandatory quarantine as a measure on Sunday, March 22, while relying on the Public Health Act for enforcement.
As per the Act, an individual who is placed under mandatory quarantine does not necessarily have a right to be released but can question before a court of law whether the quarantine is justified.
If a person who should be under quarantine fails to complete the prescribed period or leaves while still posing a danger to public health, ty can be charged with a fine of Ksh 30,000, a 3-year prison term or both.
