By Ekakoro E
Today Uganda begins food distribution to the poor affects by the lockdown in Bwaise, an outskirt of Kampala. It will be supervised by the army and police. Uganda’s GDP per capita is about a third of Kenya’s (depending on the metric you use). Uganda has 44 confirmed cases to date, Kenya was at 122 the last time I checked. What am I saying? Its easier to deal with thing before it gets you than to deal with it after you’ve got it.
We’re wasting too much time dismissing all good advice as elitist instead of pressuring the government to come up with a plan on how to support Kenyans under a total lockdown for a limited number of days. What M7 called the bitter pill for a short time. Anyone who says this common sense is accused of being insensitive to the poor.
Instead of pressuring the government to the right thing by Kenyans and being accountable for the funds provided to deal with Covid-19, we’re embroiled in stupid wars amongst ourselves, the worst insults being “you’re saying this because your privileged.” As if being rich by itself is wrong. As if all rich people are responsible for the existence of poverty. Yes, some rich people got so by making others poor, but it doesn’t make being rich a bad thing.
Well, we’re still allowing PSVs and long distance travel and even ignoring emerging science that says the virus lingers in the air for about 45 seconds, meaning an infected person could infect several people following 45 seconds behind them and not eve enough the latest technology would be able to trace them. In other words, just by standing outside and doing nothing else, you’re already at risk. But what do I know, I’m a privileged Kenyan who doesn’t know that people must eat and pay rent. Even if they’ll have to do that inside their graves.
Just know that the super-rich, while unable to travel outside the country, can import equipment and convert their bedrooms into ICT centres while the rest of you have to scramble for rh nonexistent ones in public hospitals. If it becomes an epidemic, you won’t even be able to watch your family die or bury them. In all likelihood, you’ll be busy dying too, or already dead. But in your last moments you will probably be wishing you’d stayed locked up surviving on salt water for 2 weeks. Common sense says the best way to protect yourself against this thing is by NOT CATCHING IT IN THE FIRST PLACE.
