Kenya has confirmed four more cases of coronavirus (COVID-19), raising the total to 42.
In a statement on Sunday, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said the patients include a Kenyan citizen and three foreigners from US, Cameroon and Burkina Faso.
He noted that a total of 69 samples have been analysed over the past 24 hours.
Of the four new cases, the CS said, three are based in Nairobi and one from Mombasa.
“Nairobi continues to lead with 31 cases followed by Kilifi with 6, Mombasa with 3 while Kajiado and Kwale have one each. Out of the 42, 24 are male while 18 are female, ” Kagwe said.
The CS stated that tracing of contacts is ongoing.
The government is monitoring close to 1000 close contacts with 18 individuals admitted at Mbagathi Hospital awaiting test results.
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The CS condemned claims by a section of the political class that the government is hiding crucial information regarding the fight against COVID-19 in the country.
“Trying to gain political mileage out of a disease is as immoral as anyone could ever imagine, it’s the worst that we can see in terms of political manoeuvre and it’s wrong. It symbolises everything that is wrong without society, ” he said.
The remarks were directed at Dagoretti South Member of Parliament John Kiarie who claimed that the government was sugar-coating the Coronavirus situation in the country.
In a series of tweets yesterday night, the MP claimed that at least 7000 people who travelled into the country are yet to be tested for Coronavirus.
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The individuals, Kiarie said, are quarantined at several government institutions and hotels in the country.
The mister dismissed the claims saying the government only has 2050 people currently in mandatory quarantine in 14 designated places including government institutions and hotels.
“It’s unethical really for anyone and more so one purporting to be a leader to misled people for whatever reasons they may particularly have in regards to the fight against coronavirus, ” said Kagwe.
“If in other countries, British National Healt Service (NHS) has already been overrun by the demands of the illness, even Italy and America… it could also happen here and criticising the government is just adding insult to the injury.”
In the next few weeks, the MP said, Kenya might be confirming excess of 10,000 positive cases.
“CS Mutahi is only communicating what they have tested with the limited testing kits available. There are many, many untested, unreported positive cases out here, ” he said.
“Kenya Government must forthwith communicate the gravity of the real situation without sugar-coating anymore. Let Kenyans know how bad things are about to get. They will be better equipped to make personal decisions and put up with government decrees, measures and restrictions.”
The CS, however, said the government is not carrying out tests randomly but in consideration of the dates the individuals arrived in the country.
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