By Peter Mukabi
Seven American aid workers infected with the Ebola virus have been placed in a quarantine facility in Kenya, according to a report published by the international news agency Reuters.
The report quotes Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham as confirming the development, saying the decision was prompted by travel restrictions imposed by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump on infected American citizens returning home.
The development is likely to spark concern among many Kenyans who have strongly opposed the establishment of an Ebola quarantine facility in the country. Critics have argued that such a facility could introduce the deadly virus into Kenya, which has never recorded a confirmed Ebola outbreak, while also raising concerns about whether the country’s healthcare system is adequately prepared to contain any potential spread of the disease.
Public opposition has been particularly strong in Nanyuki, where protests against the proposed quarantine facility turned violent several weeks ago after demonstrators clashed with police.
The matter has also been the subject of legal proceedings. Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale was summoned to court to confirm that construction of the proposed Ebola quarantine centre at a military camp in Nanyuki, Laikipia County, had been halted.
The court had accused Duale of failing to comply with orders suspending construction until a petition challenging the project was heard and determined. Although the court was initially prepared to sanction the Health Cabinet Secretary for contempt, it later declined to do so after he presented documents confirming that the government’s directive to stop construction had been implemented.
Earlier reports indicated that the Trump administration had pledged to respect the Kenyan court’s decision halting construction of the quarantine facility and not to transfer infected American citizens to Kenya while the legal dispute remained unresolved.
Despite the opposition, President William Ruto has consistently defended the proposed Laikipia quarantine facility, saying it is part of a broader national programme to strengthen Kenya’s capacity to respond to infectious disease outbreaks. He has also argued that Kenya has a responsibility to support its international partners by assisting infected American citizens, noting that the project is being financed by the United States.
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