KMPDU calls for arrests over 'sneaked' Ebola patient, cites security risk

The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Deputy Secretary General Dr Dennis Miskellah.

The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) is now calling for investigation, arrest and prosecution of anyone who allegedly sneaked an Ebola patient into Kenya.

The lobby group’s Deputy Secretary General Dr Dennis Miskellah said the incident poses a serious security and public health risk that should not be condoned.

According to him, people involved in the movement of the patient, including members of his patient's family, knew that he was critically ill and should have alerted security agencies and the government.

Failure to report the patient, according to Miskellah, amounted to criminal negligence and exposed millions of Kenyans to the risk of Ebola infection.

“The most patriotic and humane thing to do would have been to notify the authorities and the government,” said Miskellah.

He questioned why the patient, who had reportedly been ill for about a month, was not declared at the border, even though he was coming to Kenya seeking treatment.

“The worst we can have as a country is dishonesty in the self-declaration forms at the border points. We must be honest when filling those forms."

Miskellah claimed the patient and his companions deliberately avoided official routes.

This is because they feared being stopped at checkpoints, instead travelling by road from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) through Uganda.

“It is very unfair to sacrifice your own people and country. Kenyans should be able to call out such traitors,” regretted the doctor.

Additionally, he observed that the patient could not have travelled to Kenya alone and on this, he questioned the role of those who may have helped him evade screening points.

“Why bring someone who is sick, knowing very well he is sick?" Posed Miskellah. "This risks the entire nation because of selfishness."

He said even as Kenya holds counties and health facilities accountable for preparedness, citizens must also act responsibly during outbreaks.

At the same time, the KMPDU official questioned Kenya’s preparedness to manage Ebola.

He singled out counties' ability to provide blood supplies for patients with the haemorrhagic disease, at a time when the country continues to face blood shortages.

Further, he asked whether healthcare workers who served during the Covid-19 pandemic would be willing to risk their lives again in an outbreak caused by what he termed reckless actions.

“The era of pandemics is here because the world is a global village,” he said, while calling for stronger cross-border partnerships and sharing of information between countries.

He urged the government to strengthen surveillance and preparedness, warning that infectious diseases do not respect borders or gaps in health systems.

“We must build cross-border partnerships and knowledge sharing. The government needs to step up because if we are not careful, we shall all sleep and find ourselves all dead because pandemics do not know preparedness and barriers,” he warned.

Kenya has reported its first-ever case of Ebola Virus Disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus.