Kenyans have reached out to President Uhuru Kenyatta, urging him to lessen measures still intact and stipulated to curb the spread of Coronavirus (Covid-19).
This was after the Ministry of Health announced a drop in the daily Covid-19 cases and CS George Magoha's hinted on the resumption of studies before January 2021.
"You’re aware the virus is starting to look like it is going to stagnate…we’re saying, should the situation change, we shall be ready and willing to look at the scenario once again in the interest of our children," Magoha stated on Tuesday, August 24 in reference to the reopening of schools on January 2021.
On Friday, August 21, Kenya recorded 322 cases out of 4,470 samples (7.2% positivity rate), on Saturday, August 22, she recorded a 6.2% positivity rate with 355 cases out of 5,274 samples.
On Sunday, August 23, a 5.8% positivity rate was recorded with 246 cases out of 4,197 samples and on Monday, August 24, 193 cases were recorded out of 3,381 samples (5.7%).
According to the World Health Organisation, for a country to announce that its curve has flattened, it needs to record a 5% positivity rate for 14 days consistently.
Kenyans were divided, with some urging Kenyatta to lessen measures such as night curfew (from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m) and also reopen bars and allow matatus to operate normally. Others opposed the calls.
"Bars are still closed. Restaurants restricted from selling alcohol. The numbers of people attending places of worship are still restricted, the curfew is still in place. The President reflected on the very difficult balance between lives and livelihoods. A very delicate balance," Solomon Kuria tweeted.
One Githeka stated that in the period between 9 p.m. and dawn, people tend to be careless and this increases the risk of contracting Covid-19. Whether to lift these measures or to continue enacting them is a hard decision the president has to make for the people of Kenya, he says.
Joy Mutegi added that the President stated that if Kenyans are disciplined, follow protocols of hygiene, social distancing and use of masks, then the country can be gradually reopened and return to something resembling normalcy.
However, acting Health Director-General Dr Patrick Amoth warned that Kenya was not yet out of the woods and was still facing the danger of another spike, despite the country recording a drop in daily cases. This has already happened in countries perceived to have contained the virus such as South Korea.
"The next three or four weeks will be critical. They will guide us on whether we hit the magical 5% or not, If we can sustain that rate for two weeks, we can conclusively say we have flattened the curve and lift remaining measures," Amoth stated.
As of Monday, August 24, Kenya had recorded 32,557 positive cases out of 425,364 samples tested so far (7.7% positivity rate). 554 people had died by the same day and 18,895 recoveries were also recorded.
