About thirty years ago when I was in my early twenties, some two friends and I were driving from Busia at night when our back-left tire suffered a puncture. Unfortunately, the spare tire also had a puncture so we couldn’t use it.
Together with Ben Kavyu and Dominic Mwamisi, the two friends with me, we agreed to fill up the punctured wheel with soil and grass then drive to the nearest petrol station. Somehow, this stopgap measure worked just as envisioned.
Coronavirus has punctured the world and left us stranded at the side of the road. There are no spare wheels and we are wondering what next. Millions are wondering if they will be paid full salaries or if they will even be paid. Consequently, many are wondering where they will get money for food and rent.
As if these direct corona woes are not enough, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics released a painful report last week revealing that four million Kenyan youth are unemployed. This number will probably be higher in the next report, thanks to this pandemic.
Despite all this bad news, I suggest that we shouldn’t lose hope because the daylight is already upon us. At an individual level, the dark night may have already passed for Brenda Cherotich and Brian Orinda, the two young Kenyans reported to have recovered from the coronavirus (the social media busts and their presentation notwithstanding). Together with the Kilifi Deputy Governor, they have endured both the physical weight of coronavirus and the emotional turmoil that comes with it.
Thankfully, they are now supposedly free of the deadly virus. The immense weight of such an experience lends credence to the rallying call that as responsible Kenyans, we shouldn’t go around spreading it.
Even asymptomatic people – those infected but not yet exhibiting any symptoms – can spread coronavirus. We all have a responsibility to adapt a new Swag – Stay at home; Wash your hands; Adapt to all the necessary changes; Think and act green. Thinking and acting green means we follow the footsteps of nature and regenerate accordingly. Just as a tree sheds old leaves to make way for new leaves, we need to shed the old habits that birth and spread the disease. This is the #swag that the millions of youth in this country should share on social media and implement in their daily lives.
As the country takes bold steps to halt the spread of coronavirus, we need to pause and celebrate the efforts of Kenyans who are on the frontline of this unprecedented war. We remain indebted to the doctors, nurses and all health workers at Mbagathi hospital, plus all hospitals and health centres now on duty.
The other unsung heroes serving courageously in the frontline are members of the National Multi-Agency Command Centre for Covid-19. This centre commands the war operations from a military base. It brings together critical players across the length and breadth of government. Through their painstaking coordination, security agents have been able to track down contacts of infected persons and ensure their immediate quarantine.
Thanks to their swift action, most of the people who were recently found to be infected are already under quarantine. If this hadn’t been the case, there would have been thousands additional new infections.
As recently announced by Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe, Kenya is geared to manufacture Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) materials. This will create local jobs and boost protection of our health providers and the country at large. Through the coordination of the National Multi-Agency Command Centre for Covid-19 and the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, this equipment will reach all relevant people in every corner of the country.
To bolster this initiative, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) has zero-rated application fees for items under PPE category. Further to this Kebs has now made it possible for any Kenyan to go online and download approved mask prototypes and standards for free.
At the grassroots level, boda boda riders are already ferrying food to places where it is needed. If this pandemic persists, this food distribution role will become even more critical. Such is the teamwork that we should continue nurturing.
Irrespective of the ongoing coronavirus challenges, it has become evident that through teamwork, this dark night will pass. Just as I did almost thirty years ago, we may have to resort to uncomfortable stopgap measures to keep the vehicle going. STAY AT HOME!
- The writer is founder and chairperson, Green Africa Foundation. www.isaackalua.co.ke
