President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced the closure of the border between Kenya and Tanzania and Somalia to mitigate the spread of the Covid-19 -pandemic.
Addressing the nation from State House Nairobi on Saturday, May, 16, the president noted that the stringent measures were occasioned by the surging number of Covid-19 cases.
"In accordance to the advice by the National Emergency Response Committee on Coronavirus and our National Security Council, I am today directing as follows:
"That there shall be a cessation of movement of persons and any passenger-ferrying automobiles and vehicles into and out of the territory of the Republic of Kenya through the Kenya-Tanzania international border except for cargo vehicles, with effect from midnight today, Saturday 16th, May 2020.
"That there shall be the cessation of movement of persons and any passenger-ferrying automobiles and vehicles into and out of the territory of the Republic of Kenya through the Kenya-Somalia international border except for cargo vehicles, with effect from midnight today, Saturday 16th, May 2020," he stated.
The president further directed that all drivers of the cargo vehicles be subjected to mandatory Covid-19 tests and will only be granted entry into the territory of the Republic of Kenya if they test negative.
The Head of State noted that even though the measures the country is putting in place are inconvenient, the far worse outcome would be for the pandemic to grow out of control.
This scenario, he stated, had been witnessed by other countries who had rushed to ease the measures for the sake of the economy only to suffer majorly in terms of recording a spike in infection rate.
He stated that the Government would continue to take every measure to protect the lives of Kenyans from the pandemic and to plan for the recovery of the economy.
"The whole world is walking through the valley of the shadow of death. However, I know that the firmness of our resolve as a nation, the fidelity of each and everyone in keeping the enemy at bay, and God’s enduring Grace, will see us into the light.
"We will emerge knowing that we have a mighty strength in our unity, our resilience as a people will see us through this pandemic Thank you," Pesident Kenyatta concluded.
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