Lamu leaders have been urged to desist from politicising the Covid-19 crisis as confirmed positive cases in the county rise to 21 since the first reported case was reportedtwo weeks ago.
Speaking to KNA Governor Fahim Yassin Twaha advised politicians to pool their political goodwill towards creating greater awareness among local over the danger that the novel Coronavirus presents in Lamu.
Lamu has so far had two Covid-19-related deaths with cases still expected to rise with mass testing yet to gain ground within the county.
“There is need for the political leadership to steer clear off desensitising residents over the Covid-19 crisis, as we urge residents to adhere to the Ministry of Health regulations to curb the spread of the pandemic in Lamu,” Twaha said.
He further revealed that the county health department has independently commissioned a risk mapping research of the most at risk areas within Lamu, with the aim to come up with suitable mitigation measures to curb the rapid spread of the Covid-19 virus.
“Unfortunately provisional findings reveal that residents are not strictly adhering to MOH regulations of wearing masks and social distancing,” the Lamu governor said.
He further noted that 70 percent of those interviewed in the survey conveyed ignorance over the need for MOH regulations and urged locals to take the pandemic seriously.
“As much as the national and county government work together, the first line of defence is the public who should be wary over the harm that the pandemic can do to our economy and quality of life,” he observed.
Sentiments echoed by Lamu Health CEC Dr. Ann Gathoni who reiterated that the county government had taken sufficient steps towards managing Covid-19 within the county.
She said there was enough protective gears and equipment for medical personnel to handle positive covid-19 cases.
“We also have separate male and female isolation wards for seriously affected cases by Covid-19 though we expect that most of those who are likely to contract the virus will just need home based care,” she added.
The county government has also taken steps to hiring more medical personnel in light of the shortage that we had earlier had and this will aid in increasing our capacity to handle health issues beyond the Covid-19 crisis,” Dr. Gathoni added.
Lamu County Commissioner Irungu Macharia urged citizens to adhere to the Covid-19 MOH rules adding that unless residents follow them to the letter numbers and even fatalities are likely to increase.
“Residents need to be aware and wary that Covid-19 is real and not a myth, and local leaders need to be at the forefront of providing viable solutions in containing the spread, by way of creating awareness and being an example to the communities they live in,” Macharia said.
