A video of a man washing and airing out what appears to be face masks by a river took social media by storm for a better part of Friday, April 17.
In the video seen by Kenyans.co.ke, the man is seen cleaning the used protective apparatus and airing them to dry out, even washing what appears to be a carrier bag.
Reports alleged that the incident took place at Madaraka in Nairobi and that the masks had been obtained either directly from the staff at Mbagathi District Hospital, with others indicating that they may have been acquired from the facility's dumpsite.
Irate members of the public expressed their displeasure at how easily, people could obtain used apparatus from the health facility and purportedly sell them to unsuspecting Kenyans.
"Pretty sure someone repackaged them. I saw someone washing used masks from Mbagathi for resale. Wickedness," Lillian Wambui remarked.
"Avoid buying unsealed masks because of poor hand hygiene by hawkers. A mask can be a source of the Covid-19 virus. Majority of the masks being sold don't meet quality standards especially cloth masks. Why does the government allow people to walk around with substandard masks?" Macharia George stated.
Kenyans called upon the relevant authorities to establish the endgame of all used apparatus from the health facilities, and launch a probe into Mbagathi hospital for the poorly disposed of masks.
This was based on allegations that the health centre was indirectly endangering the lives of Kenyans, and presenting a large window of infection.
"Who is the accomplice from the Mbagathi hospital? Does the hospital have some good way of disposal or do they just throw them away like that?" Kevin Ckay asked.
"DCI should first arrest persons responsible for disposing of hazardous waste at the hospital," Kamah remarked.
A section stated that the measures imposed by the government to cushion against the adversities of the virus, which have in turn led to recession in employment, had forced Kenyans to unimaginable depths.
Members of the public are advised to properly dispose they masks after use, by tearing them or burning them, to prevent them from making their way into the market.
"We are at higher risk, the problem is that people were never told how to dispose of them. Another thing is, people are jobless so they try to make a living through all channels available," Isaac Yegon stated.
"This is an opportunity to engage in public awareness on proper and safe disposal methods of masks," Ikenye Kemu opined.
Several other Kenyans faulted the government for the resulting vices in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, with arguments that if the masks were distributed for free, then there would not be a need to recycle, or even collect to sell by members of the public.
"Even the guy who's washing them will just infect himself and spread to the one who maybe he's supplying to and the spread continues," Lincoln Muhoro stated.
"The government should come up with stiff regulations concerning the sale of masks before exposing Kenyans to more danger," Mike Epero stated.
"This in the first place shows total irresponsibility from the authorities in charge and the government as a whole. How do they not have a safe way to dump 'the masks and other PPEs' in place," John Ngugi added.
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