Modern Coast suspends trips to these places

Modern Coast Express on Thursday announced a number of changes to its operations in the wake of the Coronavirus.

Through a statement seen by Ureport, the company noted that it had suspended all buses going to Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda with immediate effect.

The company stated that this was in line with the directives issued by the government as far as containing the spread of COVID-19 is concerned.

“We have suspended all buses going to Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda with effect from 19.03.2020.

“We would, however, like to clarify that the buses plying our routes in Kenya will continue to operate normally or as guided by the Kenya Government,” read the statement in part.

The company also announced a raft of measures it had taken to ensure the safety of passengers:

• Hand sanitizers at all booking offices, prior to boarding and during the course of the journey
• Cleaning all surfaces in the bus (seats, seat covers, seat handles and windows)
• Training of crew and sensitization on how to prevent the spread of the virus

While briefing the press over the coronavirus outbreak on Thursday afternoon in Nairobi, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe took a huge chunk of his time to warn those he said were giving fake news and creating unnecessary panic amongst Kenyans.

He was categorical that such people would be arrested and taken to Mbagathi Hospital- a facility the Government set aside for quarantining COVID-19 patients.

“We will proceed to arrest a number of them to prove our point, and of course since they want something to report regarding coronavirus, we will oblige by taking them to Mbagathi where they can report the matter.

“Because that’s where the issue of coronavirus can be handled,” he said, adding that, “Persons in the social media are causing concern and panic among citizens.”

The CS who was visibly angry as he delved on the issue of misinformation on the virus said that the coronavirus was squarely in the Kenyan soil. And, that actions by government had not concealed any secrets on the status of the outbreak.

“It cannot be unreal in Kenya when it is real in China, and in the USA, in Spain in Italy and we think that in Kenya it is something to joke around with,” he stated.