Covid-19 rules are tough but they are worth the fight

The government’s response to Covid-19 might have come as difficult news for many. Countries that have eased lockdowns too quickly have found themselves scrambling to prevent a second outbreak.

Just look at South Korea, where a new outbreak occurred the day lockdown was eased. At least 130 cases have been linked to one man who went to a few nightclubs in Seoul’s nightlife district.

Now, the government is testing an additional 35,000 people that were either in that area on the same night or have come into contact with people that were there.

While South Korea has been doing a great job from the beginning of acting swiftly and trying to mitigate the spread of the virus as quickly as possible, it has not been easy for anyone.

In many countries, where the leaders did not act as quickly or as decisively from the beginning, citizens have fared far worse.

Countries like Italy, Spain and France were some of the worst hit nations. Many people in these countries watched as their elders succumbed to the deadly virus as the hospitals were overwhelmed.

A few weeks later, it started to hit the United Kingdom and United States worse than anywhere else.

Now, the United States – the wealthiest and most powerful country on earth – is suffering from one of the highest death rates as well as per capita infections.

As President Donald Trump dawdled, his people have been suffering.

While no public health expert, scientist or doctor could have fully predicted how much Covid-19 would affect the world in 2020, it still has been possible to mitigate it to some extent.

And the leaders who have made quick but informed decisions have made all the difference.

More than two months following the first documented case in Kenya and we still had less than 1,000 cases.

While of course every case is worrying, and every death a tragedy, this is in fact a sign of success.

We all know by now how quickly and easily Covid-19 can spread. It could be far worse than the situation we are in, but luckily we have a leader who considers all of the repercussions of a pandemic and the best ways to prevent it.  In times of crisis, leaders must act fast to save the citizens.

So while the extended lockdown and closure of borders may anger some of our neighbours in East Africa, it is also protecting us.

Having porous borders will allow the virus to spread more and more. But with solid, reasonable policy decisions like the ones the government continues to make, we can slowly begin to re-open businesses within our country without too much risk. The gradual and cautious reopening of restaurants, for example, is a good place to begin.

If we continue to maintain physical distance from one another and wear masks at all times whilst in public places, we will at least rest assured knowing that we have done what we can to protect ourselves and others.

So while the extensions of rules we have quickly learned to get used to might not make us the most happy, it is still the right thing to do when considering the health of ourselves and others, and the foresight to make difficult decisions now that help our economy later.

The Kenyan healthcare system is still in good shape and this is in part due to the fact that improving healthcare provision and eventually reaching universal healthcare for all has been one of the main things that the president has been working on developing.

 Let us allow the government and other leaders to do their jobs and trust that they are making informed decisions based on the available information.